BENJAMIN 


TRUE  STORIES  OF  GREAT   AMERICANS 


BENJAMIN   FRANKLIN 


BENJAMIN    FRANKLIN 


BY 


E.  LAWRENCE  DUDLEY 

AUTHOR    OF 

"THE   ISLE   OF   WHISPERS,"    'THE   GHOST    SHIP" 
ETC. 


"Then   came   a   man   endowed    with    every   art 
To  serve  his  country ;   to   allay  its  fears ; 

His   name,   beloved   by   every   loyal   heart, 

Beams    like    a    beacon    down    the    flood    of    years.' 


THE   WORLD   SYNDICATE    PUBLISHING   CO. 
Cleveland,  O.  New  York,  N.  Y. 


PUNTED  IK  THE    UNITED   STATES    of   AMERICA 


COPYRIGHT,  1915, 
Bv  THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY. 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.    Published  September,  1915.    Reprinted 
August,  1935. 


8RIF 
URL 

' 


THE  author  wishes  to  acknowledge  his  indebted- 
ness to  Paul  Leicester  Ford's  "The  Many-sided 
Franklin,"  to  Sydney  George  Fisher's  "The  True 
Benjamin  Franklin,"  to  Franklin's  admirable  Auto- 
biography, and  to  James  Parton's  excellent  "  Life 
and  Times  of  Benjamin  Franklin,"  for  much  of  the 
material  contained  in  this  book. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I 

PACK 

FRANKLIN  THE  BOY i 

CHAPTER  II 
FRANKLIN  THE  APPRENTICE 12 

CHAPTER  III 
FRANKLIN  THE  RUNAWAY 20 

CHAPTER  IV 
FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN       .        .        •  «r  •        .28 

CHAPTER  V 
THE  FIRST  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND 40 

CHAPTER  VI 
THE  JUNTO .        .        .46 

CHAPTER  VII 
FRANKLIN  THE  PRINTER 55 

CHAPTER  VIII 
POOR  RICHARD'S  ALMANAC 63 


viii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  IX 
FRANKLIN  THE  CITIZEN 73 

CHAPTER  X 
FRANKLIN  THE  SCIENTIST 84 

CHAPTER  XI 
FRANKLIN  THE  SOLDIER 98 

CHAPTER  ^XII 
THE  SECOND  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND       .        .        .        .no 

CHAPTER  XIII 
THE  PAXTON  MASSACRE 121 

CHAPTER  XIV 
FRANKLIN  THE  AGENT 128 

CHAPTER  XV 
THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS 140 

CHAPTER  XVI 
FRANKLIN  THE  PATRIOT 152 

CHAPTER  XVII 
FRANKLIN  THE  COMMISSIONER 162 


CONTENTS  ix 

CHAPTER  XVIII 

FAG* 

THE  MISSION  TO  FRANCE 175 

CHAPTER  XIX 
FRANKLIN  THE  TREATY-MAKER 189 

CHAPTER  XX 
FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT 200 

CHAPTER  XXI 
THE  FAREWELL  TO  FRANCE 214 

CHAPTER  XXII 
FRANKLIN  THE  GOVERNOR 223 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

CHAPTER  I 
FRANKLIN  THE  BOY 

MORE  than  two  hundred  years  ago  there  was 
born  in  Boston  a  baby  who  was  destined  to  become 
the  foremost  man  of  his  time.  He  became  famous 
not  only  as  a  statesman  but  as  a  scientist  as  well, 
for  that  baby  was  our  own  Benjamin  Franklin. 
He  was  born  on  Sunday,  January  17,  1706,  and 
was  baptized  in  the  famous  old  church  —  the 
Old  South  Church  —  just  across  the  street  from 
his  birthplace.  He  was  carried  there  by  his  father 
through  deep  snow,  and  was  named  Benjamin 
after  his  father's  brother,  who  was  then  living  in 
England.  Later  the  brother  came  to  this  country 
and  became  the  favorite  uncle  of  his  little  namesake. 

Benjamin's  father,  Josiah,  was  the  youngest  of 
four  brothers,  and  had  been  born  and  bred  in 
England,  in  the  little  village  of  Ecton,  about 
sixty  miles  from  London.  It  is  a  curious  fact 

B  I 


2  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

that  only  a  few  miles  away  was  situated  the  Manor 
of  Sulgrave,  the  estate  of  the  Washington  family, 
from  whom  our  George  Washington  was  descended. 
But  these  latter  were  gentlefolk,  while  the  Frank- 
lins were  of  the  farmer  and  small  tradesman  class. 
And  until  1755,  when  Benjamin  Franklin,  then  a 
man  of  forty-nine,  first  met  George  Washington 
in  the  camp  of  General  Braddock  in  this  country, 
it  is  not  likely  that  the  two  families  had  ever  held 
any  communication  with  each  other. 

For  centuries  the  eldest  son  of  the  Franklin 
family  had  inherited  the  thirty-acre  farm  and  the 
small  stone  dwelling-house  and  forge  lying  on 
the  outskirts  of  Ecton,  and  there  had  plied  the 
family  trade  of  blacksmith,  while  the  other  sons 
were  apprenticed  out  to  other  occupations.  Josiah, 
being  the  youngest  son,  learned  the  trade  of  dyer, 
and  for  a  time  lived  in  Banbury,  in  England. 
About  1685,  however,  he  decided  to  emigrate 
to  this  country,  and  with  his  wife  and  three  small 
children  undertook  the  long  and  tedious  voyage  to 
Boston. 

The  city  was  then  about  fifty  years  old,  and 
had  between  five  and  six  thousand  inhabitants. 
Most  of  the  townsfolk  belonged  to  the  stern 
Puritan  type  and  lived  simple  lives  with  but  few 
comforts  and  pleasures.  There  was  always  a 


FRANKLIN  THE  BOY  3 

certain  amount  of  bustle  and  movement  along 
the  water  front,  where  the  foreign  ships  unloaded 
their  cargoes,  and  where  the  news  of  the  world, 
often  months  old,  could  be  gathered  from  the 
sailors.  But  in  the  narrow,  twisting  streets 
which  ran  up  into  the  town,  everything  was  sedate 
and  quiet ;  and  beyond  the  limits  of  the  city  there 
was  an  almost  unbroken  wilderness.  Tribes  of 
Indians  still  lived  in  the  surrounding  country, 
coming  into  town  to  barter  skins  for  beads  and 
knives  and  bright- colored  cloth;  and  in  times  of 
famine  even  wild  animals,  driven  in  by  hunger, 
prowled  the  streets  in  search  of  food. 

Here  Franklin's  father  established  himself.  But 
finding  that  there  was  little  chance  to  succeed  in 
his  trade  of  dyer,  he  soon  turned  to  the  more 
thriving  business  of  tallow  chandler  and  soap 
boiler.  In  those  days  it  was  the  custom  for 
tradesmen  to  mark  their  places  of  business  by  some 
special  object;  and  to  show  where  he  sold  his 
soap  and  candles  Josiah  fixed  upon  the  sign  of 
the  Blue  Ball.  The  identical  ball,  about  the 
size  of  a  cocoanut,  and  bearing  the  name  of  Josiah 
Franklin  in  faded  letters,  hung  at  the  corner  of 
Union  and  Hanover  streets  for  over  one  hundred 
and  fifty  years,  and  was  to  be  seen  as  late  as  the 
time  of  the  Civil  War.  It  was  to  a  house  on  this 


4  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

corner  that  Josiah  moved  from  his  home  on  Milk 
Street  a  short  time  after  Benjamin  was  born. 

Benjamin's  mother  was  Josiah  Franklin's  second 
wife,  and  the  daughter  of  one  of  the  early  settlers 
of  the  island  of  Nantucket.  Her  maiden  name  was 
Abiah  Folger.  Benjamin  himself  was  the  thir- 
teenth child  in  a  family  of  seventeen,  and  the  tenth 
and  youngest  son.  Indeed,  he  tells  us  with  some 
pride  that  he  was  "  the  youngest  son  of  the  youngest 
son"  for  five  generations,  and  states  that  it  was 
nothing  uncommon  to  have  twelve  or  fourteen  at 
his  father's  table  every  day. 

Of  his  earliest  years  there  is  little  or  no  record. 
One  incident,  however,  although  there  is  some 
doubt  as  to  whether  it  really  happened,  has  become 
so  famous  that  it  is  worthy  of  mention.  He  re- 
lated it  himself  years  afterward  in  the  form  of  a 
fable. 

On  a  holiday,  he  tells  us,  his  friends  filled  his 
pockets  with  coppers,  and  he  went  directly  to  a 
shop  where  they  sold  toys  for  children.  Being 
charmed  by  the  sound  of  a  whistle  which  he  heard 
another  boy  blowing,  he  bought  one  at  the  shop, 
giving  all  his  money  for  it.  Much  pleased  with 
his  purchase,  he  went  whistling  all  over  the  house, 
to  the  delight  of  himself,  but  to  the  great  annoy- 
ance of  his  family.  Finally  his  brothers  and  sisters 


FRANKLIN  THE  BOY  5 

and  cousins,  learning  the  price  he  had  paid  for  the 
whistle,  told  him  that  he  had  given  four  times  as 
much  as  it  was  worth,  and  reminded  him  of  all  the 
good  things  he  might  have  bought  with  the  money, 
laughing  at  him  so  much  that  he  cried  with  vex- 
ation. This  event,  he  tells  us,  was  afterward  of 
use  to  him,  for  he  remembered  the  lesson  always; 
so  that  often,  when  he  was  tempted  to  buy  some 
unnecessary  thing,  he  would  say  to  himself,  "Don't 
give  too  much  for  the  whistle." 

At  the  age  of  eight  he  was  placed  in  the  Boston 
Grammar  School,  his  father  at  that  time  intending 
to  make  a  minister  of  him;  but  before  the  year 
had  come  to  a  close  his  father  had  decided  that  the 
expense  of  educating  him  for  the  Church  would  be 
too  great  for  his  small  means ;  and  though  Benja- 
min had  risen  to  the  head  of  his  class  and  stood  in 
line  for  speedy  promotion,  he  was  taken  from  the 
Grammar  School  and  sent  to  a  school  kept  by  Mr. 
George  Brownwell,  noted  for  his  skill  in  teaching 
writing  and  arithmetic.  Here  Benjamin  remained 
for  a  year  and  learned  to  write  a  good  hand,  but 
failed  entirely  in  arithmetic.  At  the  end  of  that 
time,  when  only  ten  years  old,  he  was  taken  out  of 
school  by  his  father  to  help  him  in  his  business, 
and  for  two  years  he  cut  candlewicks,  filled  candle 
molds,  attended  shop,  and  ran  errands. 


He  disliked  his  work  and  no  doubt  welcomed  his 
rare  hours  of  leisure,  when  he  could  take  part  in 
the  sports  of  his  comrades.  Like  most  boys  who 
live  on  the  coast,  Benjamin  soon  became  skilled  in 
the  management  of  boats,  and  was  the  acknowl- 
edged leader  in  all  feats  of  swimming.  In  this 
latter  sport  he  showed  his  talent  for  invention  by 
making  two  oval  palettes,  each  about  ten  inches 
long  and  six  broad,  with  a  hole  for  the  thumb, 
similar  to  the  palettes  used  by  painters.  When 
swimming  he  pushed  the  edges  of  these  palettes 
forward  and  struck  the  water  with  their  flat  sur- 
faces as  he  drew  them  back.  He  tells  us  that  he 
swam  faster  by  means  of  these  palettes,  but  that 
they  tired  his  wrists. 

Another  experiment,  however,  proved  more 
successful.  Let  him  describe  it  in  his  own  words : 
{tl  amused  myself  one  day  with  flying  a  paper 
kite ;  and  approaching  the  bank  of  a  pond  which 
was  near  a  mile  broad,  I  tied  the  string  to  a  stake, 
and  the  kite  ascended  to  a  very  considerable  height 
above  the  pond,  while  I  was  swimming.  In  a  little 
time,  being  desirous  of  amusing  myself  with  my 
kite,  and  enjoy  at  the  same  time  the  pleasure  of 
swimming,  I  returned,  and  loosing  from  the  stake 
the  string  with  the  little  stick  which  was  fastened 
to  it,  went  again  into  the  water,  where  I  found  that, 


FRANKLIN  THE  BOY  7 

lying  on  my  back  and  holding  the  stick  in  my  hands, 
I  was  drawn  along  the  surface  of  the  water  in  a  very 
agreeable  manner.  Having  then  engaged  another 
boy  to  carry  my  clothes  around  the  pond  to  a  place 
which  I  pointed  out  to  him  on  the  other  side,  I 
began  to  cross  the  pond  with  my  kite,  which  carried 
me  quite  over  without  the  least  fatigue,  and  with 
the  greatest  pleasure  imaginable.  I  was  only 
obliged  occasionally  to  halt  a  little  in  my  course 
and  resist  its  progress,  when  it  appeared  that  by 
following  it  too  quick  I  lowered  the  kite  too  much ; 
by  doing  which  occasionally  I  made  it  rise  again." 

By  this  time  Boston  had  grown  considerably. 
Hardly  a  week  passed  without  the  arrival  of  some 
vessel  from  Europe.  We  can  easily  imagine  how 
Benjamin,  together  with  other  town  boys,  would 
haunt  the  Long  Wharf,  watch  the  great  ships  come 
to  anchor  in  the  harbor,  and  listen  to  the  tales  of 
shipwreck  and  piracy  which  the  newly  landed 
sailors  might  tell.  For  those  were  days  when  the 
seas  were  infested  with  pirates,  and  it  was  a  dan- 
gerous undertaking  to  make  a  voyage. 

Whether  it  was  his  love  of  adventure,  or  his 
dislike  for  the  tallow  chandler's  trade,  or  both,  at 
this  time  he  developed  a  strong  desire  to  go  to  sea. 

How  much  the  unexpected  return  of  an  older 
brother,  who  had  sailed  away  nine  years  before 


8  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

and  had  been  given  up  for  lost,  had  to  do  toward 
strengthening  this  wish,  we  do  not  know.  It  is  not 
hard  to  imagine  the  breathless  interest  with  which 
young  Benjamin  listened  to  his  brother's  thrilling 
adventures  in  India  and  the  Far  East.  Little 
wonder  he  longed  to  go  to  sea. 

But  Benjamin's  father  objected  to  his  going  to 
sea,  and  in  this  stand  he  was  probably  aided  by 
his  brother  Benjamin,  the  "Uncle  Benjamin"  after 
whom  the  boy  had  been  named.  This  uncle  had 
come  to  America  hi  1715,  and  was  then  living  in 
the  same  house  with  his  namesake.  He  was  a 
quiet,  studious  man,  with  a  fondness  for  writing 
verses.  It  was  from  him  that  young  Benjamin 
acquired  much  of  his  early  knowledge  and  his  love 
for  books  and  reading.  The  elder  man  had  in- 
vented a  system  of  shorthand,  by  means  of  which 
he  took  down  sermons  while  they  were  being 
preached  in  church.  This  system  he  taught  the 
boy ;  but,  as  Benjamin  tells  us  later,  he  was  never 
able  to  master  it.  It  must  have  been  a  good  deal 
of  a  task  to  take  down  the  long  sermons  then 
preached. 

Uncle  Benjamin's  "poetry  books"  are  still  in 
existence,  and  in  them  are  several  poems  addressed 
to  his  nephew.  The  earliest  was  written  when 
the  boy  was  only  four  or  five  years  of  age,  and  is 


FRANKLIN  THE  BOY  9 

said  to  have  been  inspired  by  a  report  that  Ben- 
jamin had  shown  an  inclination  for  warlike  affairs. 
It  runs  as  follows : 

"Believe  me,  Ben,  it  is  a  dangerous  trade, 
The  sword  has  many  marred  as  well  as  made ; 
By  it  do  many  fall,  not  many  rise  — 
Makes  many  poor,  few  rich,  and  fewer  wise ; 
Fills  towns  with  ruin,  fields  with  blood ;  beside 
'Tis  sloth's  maintainer,  and  the  shield  of  pride. 
Fair  cities,  rich  to-day  in  plenty  flow, 
War  fills  with  want  to-morrow,  and  with  woe." 

When  young  Benjamin  had  served  his  father 
two  years,  the  latter,  probably  still  fearing  that  his 
son  might  slip  off  and  ship  on  some  vessel,  decided 
to  apprentice  him  to  a  more  agreeable  trade,  and 
together  they  visited  the  various  workshops  of  the 
town.  Benjamin  tells  us  that  he  watched  the 
workmen  with  interest,  and  ever  after  it  was  a 
pleasure  to  him  to  see  a  good  mechanic  handle  his 
tools.  None  of  the  trades,  however,  seems  to  have 
attracted  him  strongly.  Finally  it  was  decided 
that  he  should  go  for  a  few  days  into  the  shop  of 
his  cousin  Samuel,  the  son  of  his  Uncle  Benjamin, 
who  was  a  cutler,  and  see  whether  this  business 
was  to  his  liking. 

Evidently  it  was  not  distasteful  to  him;  but 
before  he  could  become  his  cousin's  apprentice, 


io  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

there  was  a  large  premium  to  be  paid.  This  pre- 
mium was  a  sum  of  money  which  every  apprentice 
wishing  to  be  taught  a  trade  had  to  pay  to  the 
master  who  taught  him.  In  the  cutlery  business 
it  amounted  to  almost  one  hundred  dollars.  His 
cousin  refused  to  take  Benjamin  for  less ;  and  the 
latter,  being  unable  to  raise  such  an  amount,  was 
finally  forced  to  return  to  his  old  occupation  of 
candle-making. 

It  was  then,  for  the  first  time,  apparently,  that 
the  idea  of  making  a  printer  out  of  him  occurred 
to  his  father.  James  Franklin,  an  older  brother 
of  the  boy,  had  learned  the  trade  in  London,  and 
had  lately  returned  to  Boston  where  he  had  set  up 
a  printing-shop  of  his  own.  It  was  to  this  brother 
that  Benjamin,  then  twelve  years  old,  was  finally 
apprenticed. 

In  those  days  when  a  boy  was  apprenticed  he  had 
to  sign  a  paper  which  bound  him  to  his  master 
while  he  learned  his  master's  trade,  and  in  which 
he  promised  to  serve  his  master  faithfully,  keep 
his  master's  secrets,  and  do  his  lawful  commands. 
This  paper  was  called  an  indenture.  In  the  one 
which  Benjamin  signed  he  bound  himself  to  his 
brother  until  he  was  twenty-one  —  a  period  of 
nine  years.  How  he  ran  away  long  before  this 
period  had  expired  will  appear  later.  But  now  it 


FRANKLIN  THE  BOY  n 

is  enough  to  remember  that  Benjamin  Franklin 
was  at  last  beginning  to  learn  the  business  with 
which  his  name  has  been  so  closely  connected,  and 
through  which  he  was  to  gain  at  least  a  part  of 
his  great  fame. 


CHAPTER    H 

FRANKLIN  THE  APPRENTICE 

IN  the  year  1718  a  printing-house  was  a  very 
different  thing  from  what  it  is  to-day.  There  were 
no  typesetting  machines,  no  great  presses,  no 
clatter  and  roar  of  machinery.  The  work  was 
done  entirely  by  hand,  in  small  shops  of  two  or 
three  rooms.  The  master  and  the  apprentice 
stood  side  by  side  at  the  cases  setting  the  type, 
and  when  a  page  was  finished  they  printed  it  on  a 
small  hand-press,  not  much  larger  than  the  ordi- 
nary letterpress  of  to-day.  The  work  was  slow, 
the  hours  long,  and  the  things  that  were  printed 
were  usually  dull  and  tiresome.  The  few  story- 
books then  in  existence  were  published  in  Eng- 
land ;  and  the  printers  of  this  country  had  to 
depend  on  sermons  and  other  such  serious  writings 
as  the  authors  of  the  colonies  could  produce. 

During  the  first  years  of  his  apprenticeship  this 
was  the  sort  of  thing  that  Benjamin  helped  to  set 
up  and  print  in  his  brother's  shop  "in  Queen  Street 
near  the  Prison,  over  against  Mr.  Mills's  Schools." 

12 


FRANKLIN  THE  APPRENTICE  13 

As  an  occupation,  it  certainly  was  dull  enough, 
but  it  was  more  to  his  liking  than  the  tallow 
chandler's  trade,  and  in  a  short  time  he  had  made 
great  progress  in  learning  the  business. 

His  spare  hours,  which  came  only  after  the  shop 
had  closed  at  night  and  before  it  opened  again  in 
the  morning,  he  reserved  for  study  and  reading. 
In  those  days  there  were  no  public  libraries,  while 
good  books  were  expensive  and  few  in  number. 
One  of  his  earliest  and  most  prized  possessions  was 
John  Bunyan's  "Pilgrim's  Progress,"  and  this,  it 
is  said,  he  afterward  sold  in  order  to  buy  a  collec- 
tion of  historical  works  in  forty  little  volumes. 
Whether  he  sold  these  in  turn  to  buy  other  volumes 
is  not  known. 

Once  established  in  his  brother's  business,  he 
made  friends  with  the  apprentices  in  the  nine  or 
ten  booksellers'  shops  then  in  Boston,  and  through 
them  he  was  able  to  borrow  volumes  from  their 
masters'  shelves.  Often  he  sat  up  in  his  room  the 
greater  part  of  the  night  reading  when  the  book, 
borrowed  in  the  evening,  had  to  be  returned  early 
the  next  morning  so  that  it  might  not  be  missed. 

Inspired,  perhaps,  by  his  Uncle  Benjamin's  ex- 
ample, there  was  a  short  time  in  his  thirteenth 
year  when  he  took  to  writing  verses.  It  was  the 
custom  then,  as  it  continued  to  be  for  years  after- 


14  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

ward,  to  describe  passing  events  in  a  sort  of  dog- 
gerel poetry.  These  compositions  were  sold  in  the 
shops  and  on  the  streets,  and  some  of  them  became 
very  popular.  Only  two  of  Benjamin's  were 
printed,  both  of  them  by  his  brother.  One,  "The 
Lighthouse  Tragedy,"  described  a  shipwreck  which 
had  occurred  not  long  before ;  it  narrated  at  great 
length  the  drowning  of  the  captain  of  the  ill-fated 
vessel  and  his  two  daughters.  "The  other,  a  sailor's 
song,  gave  a  thrilling  account  of  a  battle  with  pi- 
rates, in  which  Blackbeard,  the  most  famous  pirate 
of  that  day,  had  been  defeated  and  taken  prisoner. 
These  ballads,  which  Benjamin  himself  took  out 
on  the  streets  to  sell,  made  quite  a  success.  His 
brother  wished  him  to  continue  writing  them,  but 
his  father  ridiculed  them  and  discouraged  him  by 
telling  him  that  verse-makers  were  generally  beg- 
gars. "So,"  says  Benjamin,  very  wisely,  "I  es- 
caped being  a  poet,  most  probably  a  very  bad  one." 

He  persisted,  however,  in  his  efforts  to  perfect 
himself  in  writing  prose,  and  for  the  next  few  years, 
with  the  aid  of  an  English  grammar  and  an  odd 
volume  of  Addison's  "Spectator,"  he  worked 
faithfully  at  his  self-appointed  task. 

His  lack  of  spare  tune  was  always  a  hindrance, 
but  in  his  sixteenth  year  he  hit  upon  a  scheme 
whereby  he  gamed  the  greater  part  of  the  noon 


FRANKLIN  THE  APPRENTICE  15 

hour  for  study.  A  man  named  Tryon  had  written 
a  book  recommending  people  to  do  without  meat 
and  live  entirely  on  a  vegetable  diet.  This  volume 
fell  into  Benjamin's  hands,  and  he  decided  to  follow 
its  ideas.  As  his  brother's  apprentice,  it  was 
James  Franklin's  duty  to  board  and  lodge  Ben- 
jamin, whose  refusal  to  eat  meat,  and  whose  de- 
mand for  other  sorts  of  food,  caused  some  incon- 
venience. Finally  Benjamin  told  his  brother  that 
if  he  would  give  him  half  the  money  paid  for  his 
board  he  would  board  himself.  James  gladly  con- 
sented. Benjamin  found  that,  with  care,  he  could 
save  half  of  the  stipulated  allowance,  which  gave 
him  additional  money  for  buying  the  coveted 
books.  But  there  was  still  another  advantage, 
for  now  he  could  take  his  simple  dinner  with  him 
hi  the  morning ;  and  by  eating  it  at  the  printing- 
shop,  while  the  others  went  home,  he  could  have 
nearly  the  whole  hour  to  himself. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  James  Franklin 
decided  to  start  a  fortnightly  newspaper.  In  1719 
he  had  been  given  the  job  of  printing  the  Boston 
Gazette,  a  paper  owned  by  the  postmaster  of  Bos- 
ton, and  the  third  newspaper  ever  issued  in  Amer- 
ica. But  the  contract  lasted  only  a  little  while; 
and  James,  who  had  bought  the  type  and  supplies 
necessary  to  turn  out  the  paper,  suddenly  found 


16  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

himself  left  in  the  lurch.  In  August,  1721,  there- 
fore, in  spite  of  the  protests  of  his  friends,  who 
thought  the  undertaking  too  risky,  he  published 
the  first  number  of  the  New  England  Courant. 

From  the  first  the  paper  appears  to  have  pros- 
pered. James  gathered  around  him  a  group  of 
clever  young  men  who  contributed  articles  and 
witty  comments  on  current  events.  It  was  the 
custom  of  these  men  to  meet  at  the  printing-house 
and  discuss  the  next  issue.  Hearing  their  talk 
and  the  praise  with  which  their  contributions  were 
received,  Benjamin  himself  was  led  to  try  his  hand 
at  writing  something  for  the  paper. 

Fearing  that  his  brother  would  not  print  any 
contribution  by  him,  he  wrote  it  in  the  form  of  a 
letter,  disguising  his  handwriting;  and  on  a  cer- 
tain night,  after  every  one  had  left,  he  slipped  it 
quietly  under  the  door  of  the  printing-house.  The 
next  day,  as  he  worked  in  the  shop,  he  could  hear 
the  little  band  of  contributors  discussing  his  article 
and  wondering  who  the  author,  "Mrs.  Silence 
Dogood,"  might  be.  It  is  not  hard  to  imagine  his 
pride  when  the  article  appeared  in  the  next  issue 
of  the  Courant;  and  when,  in  the  same  issue,  he 
saw  a  notice  to  the  effect  that,  "As  the  favour  of 
Mrs.  Dogood's  Correspondence  is  acknowledged 
by  the  Publisher  of  this  Paper,  lest  any  of  her  Let- 


FRANKLIN  THE  APPRENTICE  17 

ters  should  miscarry,  he  desires  they  may  be  de- 
liver'd  at  his  Printing-Office,  or  at  the  Blue  Balls 
in  Union  Street,  and  no  questions  will  be  ask'd  of 
the  Bearer." 

In  the  first  letter  "Mrs.  Dogood"  announced 
that  "she"  intended  once  a  fortnight  to  present 
the  readers  of  the  Courant  with  a  short  "Epistle," 
and  this  promise  was  carried  out  to  the  number  of 
fourteen  articles.  At  the  end  of  that  time  Ben- 
jamin's small  store  of  subjects  had  run  out,  and  he 
finally  confessed  his  secret  to  his  brother.  These 
letters  are  his  first  contribution  to  journalism. 

Not  long  after,  however,  James  Franklin  and 
his  paper  became  involved  with  the  authorities. 
About  this  time  vaccination  for  smallpox  had 
been  introduced  in  England,  and  shortly  after 
the  colonies  had  learned  of  this  means  of  preven- 
tion. The  ministers  of  Boston,  and  especially  the 
famous  Cotton  Mather,  had  welcomed  the  idea  and 
adopted  it.  The  writers  for  the  Courant,  who  from 
the  beginning  had  poked  fun  at  the  ministers,  at 
once  attacked  the  new  discovery.  The  ministers 
replied,  and  for  months  the  wordy  war  waged  be- 
tween them.  Finally,  in  June,  1722,  after  the 
appearance  of  an  article  in  the  Courant,  which 
criticized  the  government  of  the  colony,  the  author- 
ities intervened  and  threw  James  Franklin  into 
c 


i8  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

prison.  He  remained  in  jail  a  month,  and  was  only 
released  when  he  had  apologized  humbly. 

During  the  time  of  his  brother's  imprisonment 
Benjamin  managed  the  printing-shop  and  con- 
ducted the  Courant.  But  neither  he  nor  the  little 
knot  of  contributors  appear  to  have  been  frightened 
by  the  government's  attitude,  for  the  paper  con- 
tinued to  assail  the  government  and  the  ministers 
with  greater  bitterness  than  before. 

Six  months  later,  however,  in  January,  1723, 
the  authorities  again  stepped  in ;  and  this  time  they 
forbade  James  to  print  or  publish  the  Courant  or 
any  other  pamphlet  or  paper  of  like  nature  until 
it  had  first  been  examined  by  the  Secretary  of  the 
Province. 

It  may  easily  be  imagined  what  dismay  this  news 
caused  in  the  little  printing-shop.  It  was  at  last 
decided  that  the  paper  should  be  issued  in  Ben- 
jamin's name  instead  of  in  that  of  his  brother. 
Furthermore,  in  order  to  avoid  the  charge  that  he 
was  continuing  to  print  the  Courant  under  the 
name  of  his  apprentice,  James  canceled  the  boy's 
indentures  and  returned  them  to  him,  causing 
him,  however,  to  sign  new  indentures  which  were 
to  be  kept  secret. 

The  first  issue  of  the  Courant  bearing  Benjamin 
Franklin's  name  as  publisher  appeared  in  Febru- 


FRANKLIN  THE  APPRENTICE  19 

ary,  1723  ;  and  until  some  time  in  the  late  summer 
or  early  autumn  of  that  year,  when  Benjamin, 
then  only  seventeen  years  old,  quarreled  with 
his  brother  and  left  him  forever,  he  continued  to 
publish  the  paper. 

For  a  long  time  there  had  been  serious  differ- 
ences between  the  two  brothers.  James  was 
harsh  and  overbearing;  Benjamin,  a  youth  of 
spirit,  naturally  resented  it.  Bitter  disputes  oc- 
curred. It  was  after  one  of  these  quarrels,  more 
violent  than  usual,  that  Benjamin,  a  lad  of  sev- 
enteen, hot  with  anger  at  James's  insults,  took 
advantage  of  his  canceled  indentures  and  left  his 
brother's  service. 

To  revenge  himself,  James  went  to  the  other 
printing-shops  in  Boston  and  gave  such  a  poor 
account  of  his  brother  that  later,  when  Benjamin 
applied  to  the  masters  for  work,  they  all  refused 
to  employ  him. 

With  the  doors  of  his  trade  shut  against  him, 
Benjamin  decided  to  try  his  fortunes  elsewhere. 
He  secured  a  berth  on  a  vessel  bound  for  New 
York,  selling  some  of  his  precious  books  to  pay  the 
passage  money;  and  some  time  in  August  or 
September,  1723,  with  all  his  belongings  packed 
in  a  single  chest,  he  set  sail  from  Boston. 


CHAPTER  III 
FRANKLIN  THE  RUNAWAY 

THE  voyage  from  Boston  to  New  York  was  made 
safely  in  three  days.  Only  one  incident  connected 
with  it  has  come  down  to  us.  While  the  vessel 
was  becalmed  for  a  short  time  off  Block  Island 
the  sailors  amused  themselves  by  fishing  for  cod. 
Benjamin,  who  still  clung  to  his  vegetable  diet, 
looked  on  disapprovingly.  He  regarded  the  taking 
of  life  for  the  sake  of  obtaining  food  as  something 
akin  to  murder.  Later,  however,  when  the  fish 
were  being  cooked  and  he  smelt  their  appetizing 
odor,  he  was  very  much  tempted  to  break  his  rule 
and  eat  his  share.  For  a  while  he  struggled 
against  the  temptation.  Then  it  suddenly  occurred 
to  Him  that  when  the  fish  had  been  opened  he  had 
seen  smaller  fish  in  their  stomachs.  If  they  ate 
one  another,  he  thought  to  himself,  why  should 
I  not  eat  them?  Satisfied  by  his  argument,  he 
joined  the  others  of  the  company  at  dinner  and 
made  a  hearty  meal  —  which  included  fish ! 

New  York  was  then  smaller  than  Boston.    It 

20 


FRANKLIN  THE  RUNAWAY  21 

was  a  compact  little  town,  with  gabled  roofs, 
cobblestone  sidewalks,  and  narrow  crooked  lanes 
for  streets.  Its  inhabitants  were  still  chiefly 
Dutch;  and  to  such  an  extent  had  they  carried 
their  love  for  cleanliness  that  some  unknown  wit, 
in  speaking  of  the  pavements,  declared  that  the 
stones  which  formed  them  were  swept  so  thoroughly 
that  they  stood  up  sharp  and  prominent,  to  the 
great  inconvenience  of  those  who  were  not  ac- 
customed to  them.  The  Philadelphian  hi  New 
York,  he  wrote,  walked  the  streets  with  painful 
caution,  as  though  his  feet  were  lamed  with  the 
gout;  while  the  New  Yorker  shuffled  along  the 
smooth  pavements  of  Philadelphia  "like  a  parrot 
on  a  mahogany  table." 

At  the  time  of  Benjamin's  arrival  in  New  York 
there  was  not  a  single  bookstore  in  the  city,  and 
only  one  printing-office.  The  owner  of  this  shop, 
William  Bradford,  had  been  the  first  printer  in 
Pennsylvania,  but  had  left  Philadelphia  after  a 
quarrel  with  the  authorities.  Benjamin  applied 
to  him  for  work,  but  Bradford  had  nothing  to  offer. 
He  told  the  boy,  however,  that  his  son  Andrew, 
in  Philadelphia,  had  lately  lost  his  apprentice, 
and  might  employ  him.  A  little  discouraged,  but 
still  undaunted,  Benjamin  took  the  old  man's 
suggestion  and  immediately  embarked  on  a  ves- 


22  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

sel  bound  for  Amboy,  in  the  province  of  New 
Jersey. 

It  was  a  crazy  old  boat  with  rotten  sails,  manned 
by  only  one  boatman.  As  they  crossed  New  York 
Bay  a  squall  struck  them,  tearing  their  sail  to 
pieces  and  driving  them  over  toward  the  Long 
Island  shore.  In  the  midst  of  the  storm  a  drunken 
Dutchman,  the  only  other  passenger,  fell  over- 
board. Benjamin  caught  him  by  his  hair  and 
managed  to  drag  him  on  board  again.  A  little 
sobered  by  his  ducking,  the  Dutchman  pulled  a 
book  out  of  his  pocket  and  handed  it  to  Benjamin, 
asking  the  latter  to  dry  it  for  him.  It  proved 
to  be  Benjamin's  old  favorite,  Bunyan's  "  Pil- 
grim's Progress,"  printed  in  Dutch. 

The  boat,  now  beyond  the  control  of  the  boat- 
man, continued  to  sweep  on  toward  the  shore. 
The  surf  was  too  high  for  them  to  land,  and  finally 
they  were  forced  to  cast  anchor.  Some  people 
appeared  on  the  beach  and  called  to  them,  but 
the  thunder  of  the  waves  was  too  loud  for  them  to 
be  heard.  Seeing  canoes  on  the  shore,  Benjamin 
and  the  boatman  made  signs  for  the  people  to 
come  out  and  fetch  them;  but  the  people  either 
did  not  understand  or  did  not  care  to  risk  their 
lives  in  such  a  gale  and  finally  went  away. 

This  ended  all  hope  of  getting  ashore  that  night. 


FRANKLIN  THE  RUNAWAY  23 

Benjamin  and  the  boatman,  creeping  into  the  tiny 
cabin,  lay  down  beside  the  drunken  Dutchman  and 
got  what  sleep  they  could,  while  the  spray,  breaking 
over  the  boat,  leaked  through  the  planking  and 
soaked  them  to  the  skin. 

In  the  morning  the  wind  had  gone  down,  and  be- 
fore sunset  they  were  able  to  reach  Amboy.  They 
had  been  thirty  houis  on  the  water  without  food. 

That  evening  Benjamin  found  himself  rather 
feverish.  He  had  heard  somewhere  that  cold 
water  was  an  excellent  remedy  for  fever,  and  so 
drank  several  glasses  before  he  went  to  bed.  In 
the  morning  the  fever  had  entirely  disappeared, 
and  he  started  out  bravely  on  his  long  walk  of 
fifty  miles  across  New  Jersey. 

He  headed  toward  Burlington,  a  little  town  on 
the  Delaware  River,  where  he  hoped  to  get  a  boat 
to  take  him  to  Philadelphia ;  but  it  rained  so  hard 
all  day  that  he  stopped  at  a  little  inn  at  noon, 
and  remained  there  for  the  night. 

Now,  for  the  first  time,  he  began  to  wish  he  had 
not  left  home.  His  clothes,  poor  enough  when  he 
started  from  Boston,  had  become  shabby  and  worn 
from  the  ram  and  exposure.  He  had  very  little 
money,  and  no  immediate  prospect  of  earning  any 
more.  He  was  going  to  a  city  where  he  was  an 
absolute  stranger.  To  dishearten  him  still  more, 


24  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

he  found  from  the  questions  asked  him  by  the 
people  at  the  inn  that  he  was  suspected  of  being  a 
runaway  servant. 

Afraid  of  being  arrested,  he  left  the  inn  the  next 
morning  as  early  as  he  could,  and  walked  all  day, 
arriving  at  another  inn,  about  ten  miles  from  Bur- 
lington, that  evening.  Here  he  spent  the  night, 
and  reached  Burlington  the  following  forenoon. 

It  was  Saturday ;  and  he  discovered  to  his  dis- 
appointment that  the  regular  boat  had  already 
left  for  Philadelphia,  and  that  there  would  be  no 
other  until  Tuesday.  Not  knowing  what  to  do, 
he  went  to  the  house  of  an  old  woman  from  whom 
he  had  bought  a  piece  of  gingerbread,  and  asked 
her  advice.  She  invited  him  to  stay  with  her ;  and 
when  he  accepted  gladly  she  gave  him  a  dinner  of 
"ox-cheek,"  for  which  she  would  not  take  a  penny. 

He  believed  that  he  would  have  to  remain  in 
Burlington  for  several  days.  Instead,  that  very 
evening,  as  he  walked  along  the  bank  of  the  river, 
a  boat  appeared,  bound  for  Philadelphia.  There 
were  already  several  passengers  aboard,  and  Ben- 
jamin joined  them. 

As  there  was  no  wind,  they  were  forced  to  row. 
About  midnight,  Philadelphia  not  having  yet  been 
sighted,  some  of  the  passengers  insisted  that  they 
must  have  passed  the  city  in  the  darkness.  Fancy 


FRANKLIN  THE  RUNAWAY  35 

passing  Philadelphia  without  knowing  it!  Yet 
this  would  have  been  quite  possible  in  that  day, 
since  Philadelphia  was  then  a  small  settlement  and 
all  its  lights  were  put  out  early.  At  any  rate, 
the  men  refused  to  row  any  further ;  and  as  none 
of  the  company  —  neither  crew  nor  passengers  — 
knew  where  they  were,  it  was  decided  to  wait 
until  daylight.  They  turned  into  a  creek,  and 
landing  near  an  old  fence,  tore  down  the  rails 
and  made  a  fire  of  them,  for  it  was  October  and 
the  night  was  chilly. 

At  the  first  streak  of  dawn  one  of  the  company 
recognized  the  place  as  the  mouth  of  Cooper's 
Creek,  and  as  soon  as  they  put  out  into  the  river 
again  they  spied  Philadelphia  a  few  miles  away. 
An  hour's  row  brought  them  to  the  city,  where 
they  landed  at  Market  Street  Wharf  between  eight 
and  nine  o'clock  on  Sunday  morning. 

Benjamin  went  ashore  immediately.  He  was 
in  his  working  clothes  and  dirty  from  his  journey. 
His  pockets  were  stuffed  out  with  shirts  and 
stockings.  He  knew  no  one  in  the  town,  nor 
where  to  find  a  lodging.  He  was  fatigued  from 
traveling,  rowing,  and  the  want  of  rest.  He 
was  very  hungry  as  well,  and  his  whole  stock  of 
money  consisted  of  a  Dutch  dollar  and  about  a 
shilling  in  coppers. 


26  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

The  latter  he  gave  to  the  crew  of  the  boat  for 
his  passage,  —  perhaps  for  the  privilege  of  rowing ! 
—  and  then  walked  up  the  street,  gazing  about 
him.  Near  the  market-house,  he  met  a  boy  with 
bread.  Learning  from  the  boy  where  the  bread 
came  from,  he  went  to  a  baker's  shop  on  Second 
Street  and  purchased  three  great  puffy  rolls. 
With  one  of  these  under  each  arm,  and  eating  the 
third,  he  continued  up  Market  Street  as  far  as 
Fourth  Street.  On  the  way  he  passed  the  house 
of  Mr.  Read,  whose  young  daughter,  Deborah, 
was  standing  in  the  doorway.  She  smiled  at  his 
awkward  appearance,  little  dreaming  that  in 
later  years  she  was  to  be  his  wife ! 

Reaching  Fourth  Street,  then  on  the  outskirts 
of  the  city,  he  turned  south  to  Chestnut  Street, 
and  returned  to  the  river  front,  still  eating  his  roll. 

He  paused  near  the  wharf  where  he  had  landed, 
and  took  a  drink  of  water  from  the  river.  Then, 
having  satisfied  his  hunger,  he  gave  his  remaining 
two  rolls  to  a  woman  and  her  child  who  had  come 
down  the  river  with  him,  and  who  were  waiting  at 
the  wharf  to  continue  their  journey. 

It  was  then  perhaps  ten  o'clock,  and  turning 
again  up  Market  Street,  he  found  that  it  was  now 
filled  with  neatly  dressed  people,  all  going  in  the 
same  direction.  Benjamin  joined  them,  and  soon 


FRANKLIN  THE  RUNAWAY  27 

arrived  at  the  principal  meetinghouse  of  the 
Quakers,  situated  at  the  corner  of  Second  and 
Market  streets.  Following  the  throng  into  the 
building  he  found  a  seat,  and  after  looking  around 
a  while,  and  hearing  nothing  said,  fell  fast  asleep 
in  his  corner.  On  and  on  he  slept  until  some  one 
gently  woke  him  and  told  him  that  the  meeting 
was  over. 

It  was  now  noon,  and  high  time  for  him  to  seek 
a  lodging.  He  again  walked  down  toward  the  river, 
and  meeting  a  young  Quaker  whose  face  he  liked, 
he  asked  to  be  directed  to  an  inn.  The  young 
man  pointed  out  "The  Three  Mariners"  tavern. 

"There,"  he  said,  "is  one  place  that  entertains 
strangers,  but  if  thee  will  walk  with  me  I  will 
show  thee  a  better." 

He  then  led  Benjamin  along  the  wharves  to  an 
inn  called  "The  Crooked  Billet."  Here  Benjamin 
obtained  food  and  lodging.  After  dinner  he  lay 
down  without  undressing,  and  slept  until  he  was 
called  for  supper;  and  after  supper  he  went  to 
bed  again  and  again  slept  soundly.  Thus  ended  his 
first  day,  and  a  sleepy  one,  in  Philadelphia,  the  city 
which  was  to  be  his  home  for  the  remainder  of 
his  long  life. 


CHAPTER  IV 

FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN 

EARLY  the  next  morning  Benjamin  repaired  to 
Andrew  Bradford's  shop,  where,  to  his  surprise, 
he  found  old  Mr.  Bradford,  whom  he  had  met  in 
New  York  and  who  had  arrived  in  Philadelphia 
more  quickly  than  Benjamin,  for  he  had  traveled 
on  horseback.  But  here  again  disappointment 
awaited  him,  for  Andrew  had  no  employment  to 
give  him.  After  a  short  talk  the  elder  Mr.  Brad- 
ford offered  to  introduce  him  to  one  Samuel  Keimer 
who  had  lately  opened  a  small  printing-shop  in 
the  city  and  might  be  in  want  of  assistance. 

They  proceeded  at  once  to  Keimer's  office,  where 
they  discovered  the  latter  busily  engaged  in  com- 
posing an  elegy  on  a  young  man  of  some  promi- 
nence in  the  town  who  had  lately  died.  He  bore 
the  curious  name  of  Aquila  Rose.  Keimer's 
manner  of  composing  his  verses  was  to  set  them  up 
in  type  just  as  they  came  into  his  head,  without 
first  writing  them  down  on  paper.  There  was 
only  one  case  of  type;  and  the  elegy  was  so 

28 


FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN  29 

long  it  was  likely  to  require  all  of  it.  There  was  no 
written  version  to  be  set  in  type,  so  Keimer  could 
have  no  help  in  setting  it  up.  Benjamin  tried  to 
put  the  press  —  of  which  Keimer  appeared  to 
know  nothing  —  into  some  sort  of  working  order, 
and  then,  promising  to  come  back  and  print  the 
elegy  as  soon  as  it  was  set  up,  returned  to  Andrew 
Bradford's  shop,  where  he  obtained  temporary 
lodging.  A  few  days  later  Keimer  sent  for  him. 
Here  are  the  opening  lines  of  this  curious  old  poem : 

AN  ELEGY 

On  the  much  lamented  death  of  the  ingenious 
and  well-beloved 

AQUILA  ROSE 

Clerk  to  the  Honourable  Assembly  at  Philadelphia,  who  died 
the  twenty-fourth  of  the  fourth  month. 

1723.  Aged  28. 

What  mournful  accents  thus  accost  mine  ear, 
What  doleful  echoes  hourly  thus  appear ! 
What  sighs  from  melting  hearts  proclaim  aloud 
The  solemn  mourning  of  this  numerous  crowd. 
In  sable  characters  the  news  is  read, 
Our  Rose  is  withered,  and  our  Eagle's  fled, 
In  that  our  dear  Aquila  Rose  is  dead.  .  .  . 

There  are  a  hundred  or  more  lines  in  which  the 
poet  describes  at  great  length  the  birth,  education, 


30  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

emigration,  courtship,  accomplishments,  and  ulti- 
mate happy  destiny  of  the  departed  Aquila. 

Meanwhile  some  extra  work  had  been  thrown  in 
Keimer's  way,  and  when  the  elegy  was  printed 
he  took  Benjamin  into  his  regular  employment. 
Benjamin  found  him  poorly  equipped  for  his  trade. 
Keimer  was  something  of  a  scholar  and  could  set 
type  with  a  fair  degree  of  facility,  but  he  knew 
nothing  of  presswork;  so  Benjamin,  who  had  re- 
ceived a  good  training  in  this  branch  of  the  busi- 
ness, took  the  printing  under  his  special  charge. 

He  still  lodged  with  Andrew  Bradford;  but 
Keimer,  displeased  at  the  thought  of  his  assistant 
living  under  the  roof  of  a  rival  printer,  sought 
other  quarters  for  him,  and  finally  procured  him  a 
room  in  Mr.  Read's  house  near  Fourth  and  Market 
streets.  Mr.  Read's  daughter,  Deborah,  was  the 
young  girl  who  had  smiled  at  Benjamin  as  he  had 
passed  by  on  his  first  walk  through  the  city  on 
that  memorable  Sunday  morning.  But  his  chest, 
which  he  had  sent  around  from  New  York  by  sea, 
had  now  arrived,  and  he  was  able  to  appear  be- 
fore her  in  more  presentable  clothes. 

Through  Mr.  Read,  Mr.  Bradford,  and  his 
employer,  Benjamin  soon  began  to  make  acquaint- 
ances, especially  among  the  young  people  of  the 
town,  and  he  spent  many  pleasant  evenings  in 


FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN  31 

their  company.  His  chief  friends  were  Charles 
Osborne,  Joseph  Watson,  and  James  Ralph,  three 
youths  employed  as  clerks,  all  of  them  great  readers 
and  fond  of  discussing  literature.  They  all  had 
tried  their  hands  at  writing,  and  one  of  them, 
Ralph,  had  ambitions  of  becoming  a  poet. 

At  one  of  their  gatherings  it  was  arranged  that 
each  should  write  a  poem  and  submit  it  for  criti- 
cism at  their  next  meeting.  A  day  or  two  before 
the  day  of  the  meeting  Ralph  called  on  Benjamin 
privately  and,  showing  him  his  production,  asked 
his  opinion  of  it.  Benjamin  praised  it,  and  told 
Ralph  that  he  had  been  too  busy  to  write  anything 
himself.  Ralph  then  suggested  that  Benjamin 
take  the  poem  and  pass  it  off  as  his  own. 

"Osborne,"  he  said,  "will  never  allow  the  least 
merit  in  anything  of  mine,  but  makes  a  thousand 
criticisms  out  of  mere  envy.  He  is  not  so  jealous 
of  you.  ...  I  will  pretend  not  to  have  had  time 
and  so  produce  nothing.  We  shall  then  see  what 
he  will  say  to  it." 

Benjamin,  always  fond  of  a  joke,  assented  to 
the  proposition,  and  copied  out  the  poem  so  that 
it  would  appear  in  his  own  handwriting. 

At  the  meeting  Watson's  and  Osborne's  per- 
formances were  read  and  criticized.  Ralph  ap- 
plauded the  latter's  poem  especially,  and  con- 


32  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

fessed  regretfully  that  he  had  been  unable  to 
prepare  anything.  Benjamin  was  then  called  on. 
He  was  —  apparently  —  very  bashful  and  asked  to 
be  excused,  but  they  would  accept  no  excuses. 
He  must  read  his  production.  He  did.  And 
Watson  and  Osborne,  joining  in  its  praise,  gave  up 
the  contest. 

Ralph  alone  attempted  some  criticisms,  but 
Osborne  told  him  frankly  that  he  was  as  poor  a 
critic  as  he  was  a  poet!  At  their  next  meeting 
Ralph  confessed  the  trick  which  had  been  played, 
and  Osborne  in  turn  became  the  laughingstock. 

Meanwhile  an  incident  occurred  which  was  to 
have  a  far-reaching  effect  on  Benjamin's  fortunes. 
Robert  Holmes,  his  brother-in-law,  was  master 
of  a  vessel  which  traded  between  Boston  and 
Delaware.  Arriving  at  Newcastle,  some  forty 
miles  below  Philadelphia,  he  learned  that  Ben- 
jamin was  in  the  latter  city  and  wrote  him,  telling 
him  of  his  family's  anxiety  at  his  absence,  and 
assuring  him  of  their  good  will  if  he  would  return. 
Benjamin  answered  his  letter  by  thanking  him  for 
his  advice,  and  stating  his  reasons  for  quitting 
Boston  in  such  a  way  as  to  convince  Holmes  that 
he  was  in  the  right  and  his  friends  in  Boston  were 
in  the  wrong. 

Sir  William   Keith,  governor   of   the   province 


FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN  33 

of  Pennsylvania,  was  then  staying  at  Newcastle, 
and  Holmes  showed  him  Benjamin's  letter.  The 
governor  was  greatly  pleased  at  the  way  it  was 
written,  and  much  surprised  when  he  learned  Ben- 
jamin's age.  He  told  Holmes  that  Benjamin 
should  be  encouraged  and  that  he  would  do  all 
in  his  power  to  aid  him. 

A  few  days  later,  while  Keimer  and  Benjamin 
were  working  near  the  window  of  the  printing-shop, 
they  spied  Sir  William  and  another  gentleman  — 
who  afterward  turned  out  to  be  Colonel  French 
of  Newcastle  —  cross  the  street  and  knock  at  the 
door.  Keimer,  thinking  it  was  a  visit  to  him,  ran 
immediately  and  let  them  in.  The  governor, 
however,  asked  for  Benjamin,  and  on  being  in- 
troduced to  him,  paid  him  many  compliments  and 
invited  him  to  a  near-by  tavern  where  he  and  Colo- 
nel French  were  going  to  have  a  glass  of  Madeira. 
Benjamin  was  astounded,  while  Keimer  stared  at 
the  governor  with  eyes  popping  out  of  his  head. 
Benjamin  accepted  the  invitation,  however;  and 
over  the  wine  Sir  William  proposed  his  setting  up 
for  himself  in  Philadelphia.  Both  the  governor 
and  Colonel  French  assured  him  that  he  should 
have  their  support  and  influence  in  procuring  the 
printing  of  both  provinces.  Benjamin  explained 
that  he  had  no  capital  and  doubted  whether  his 


34  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

father  would  assist  him.  But  the  governor  prom- 
ised to  give  him  a  letter  to  Josiah  Franklin,  in 
which  he  would  recommend  the  latter  to  advance 
him  the  required  amount.  It  was  finally  concluded 
that  Benjamin  should  go  to  Boston  on  the  first 
vessel  that  sailed.  Meantime  the  whole  matter 
was  to  be  kept  a  secret,  and  he  was  to  continue 
to  work  for  Keimer  as  usual. 

Some  time  passed,  however,  before  he  could  get 
passage,  and  it  was  early  in  May,  1724,  before  he 
landed  in  Boston.  He  had  been  absent  more  than 
seven  months,  and  his  family  received  him  with 
open  arms. 

When  Benjamin  presented  his  letter  from  Sir 
William,  his  father  did  not  take  kindly  to  the 
suggestions  contained  in  it,  and  finally,  after  some 
weeks,  decided  not  to  grant  the  governor's  re- 
quests. To  Josiah's  mind,  Benjamin  was  still 
too  young  to  be  intrusted  with  the  management  of 
a  business  so  important  and  for  which  the  prep- 
aration must  be  so  expensive.  He  did,  however, 
promise  Benjamin  that  he  would  aid  him  later, 
and  see  that  he  was  properly  established  when  he 
was  twenty-one. 

Benjamin  returned  to  Philadelphia  and  reported 
his  lack  of  success  to  the  governor.  The  latter 
declared  that  Benjamin's  father  was  too  prudent. 


FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN  35 

"Since  he  will  not  set  you  up,"  he  continued,  "I 
will  do  it  myself.  Give  me  an  inventory  of  the 
things  necessary  to  be  had  from  England  and  I 
will  send  for  them.  You  shall  repay  me  when  you 
are  able.  I  am  resolved  to  have  a  good  printer 
here,  and  I  am  sure  you  must  succeed." 

This  was  said  with  such  apparent  cordiality 
that  Benjamin  could  find  no  reason  for  doubting 
Sir  William's  good  intentions,  and  immediately 
set  about  preparing  a  list  of  things  necessary  for 
the  stocking  of  a  small  printing-house.  It  would 
cost  about  five  hundred  dollars.  Sir  William 
approved  it  and  suggested  to  Benjamin  that  he 
himself  go  to  England  to  purchase  the  supplies. 
"And  while  there,"  he  said,  "you  may  make 
acquaintances  and  establish  correspondences  in 
the  bookselling  and  stationery  way." 

Benjamin  agreed  that  the  trip  might  be  of  great 
value  to  him. 

"Then,"  said  Sir  William,  "^get  yourself  ready 
to  go  with  Annis." 

Annis  was  the  captain  of  the  London-Hope,  the 
annual  ship  running  between  London  and  Philadel- 
phia; and  as  some  months  must  pass  before  she 
sailed,  Benjamin  returned  to  his  work  in  Keimer's 
shop. 

In   the  meantime   Keimer  had  conceived   the 


36  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

notion  of  formulating  a  new  religion,  and  he  tried 
to  persuade  Benjamin  to  join  it.  Keimer  was  to 
preach  the  doctrines,  and  Benjamin,  whose  powers 
of  argument  Keimer  had  already  tested,  was  to 
confute  all  opponents.  Two  of  the  essentials  of  the 
religion  were  to  wear  one's  beard  at  full  length  and 
to  keep  the  seventh  day  as  the  Sabbath.  Benjamin 
disliked  them  both,  but  agreed  to  them,  providing 
Keimer  would  adopt  his  new  doctrine,  the  doctrine 
of  eating  no  meat.  Although  he  was  a  great 
glutton,  Keimer  consented,  and  for  three  months 
they  lived  on  a  vegetable  diet.  Then  Keimer 
declared  he  could  stand  it  no  longer.  He  invited 
Benjamin  and  some  friends  to  a  dinner  of  roast  pig. 
The  pig,  however,  was  cooked  ahead  of  time,  and 
Keimer,  unable  to  resist  the  temptation,  ate  the 
whole  of  it  before  his  guests  arrived!  This,  so 
far  as  Benjamin  was  concerned,  ended  his  connec- 
tion with  the  new  "religion." 

The  time  for  the  departure  of  the  London-Hope 
arrived,  and  Benjamin  called  at  the  governor's 
house  to  take  his  leave,  and  to  receive  the  letters 
of  introduction  and  the  money  which  Sir  William 
had  promised  him.  He  was  told  that  the  governor 
was  busy  and  could  not  see  him.  He  called  a 
second  time,  and  a  second  time  he  received  the 
same  answer.  Finally,  when  the  ship  was  on  the 


FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN  37 

point  of  sailing,  the  governor's  secretary  informed 
him  that  Sir  Wilh'am  had  business  in  Newcastle, 
where  the  London-Hope  was  to  stop,  and  would 
there  deliver  to  him  the  letters  and  funds  sufficient 
for  his  trip. 

Benjamin,  doubting  nothing,  sailed  with  the  ship 
to  Newcastle,  and  proceeded  at  once  to  the  gov- 
ernor's lodgings.  Once  more  he  was  told  that  Sir 
William  could  not  see  him,  and  that  the  letters 
and  money  would  be  sent  to  him  on  board.  Ben- 
jamin returned  to  the  ship,  a  little  puzzled  at  the 
governor's  attitude,  but  still  trustful. 

A  few  hours  later  Colonel  French  came  aboard 
with  the  governor's  dispatches  and  delivered  them 
to  the  captain.  Benjamin,  supposing  that  his 
own  letters  were  among  them,  asked  the  captain's 
permission  to  sort  them  out  from  the  rest.  The 
captain  refused,  saying  that  they  were  all  to- 
gether in  one  bag  and  that  he  had  no  time  to  hunt 
them  up ;  but  promising  Benjamin  that  he  would 
be  allowed  to  pick  them  out  before  they  reached 
England.  Benjamin  was  satisfied,  and  they  pro- 
ceeded on  their  voyage.  j 

They  had  a  rough  but  otherwise  uneventful 
passage.  When  they  arrived  in  the  English 
Channel  the  captain  gave  Benjamin  his  promised 
opportunity  to  examine  the  dispatch-bag  for  the 


38  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

governor's  letters ;  but,  to  his  surprise  and  dismay, 
Benjamin  found  none  marked  with  his  name  or  in 
his  care.  He  picked  out  several,  however,  that 
he  thought  might  be  his,  especially  one  directed  to 
Basket,  the  king's  printer,  and  another  addressed 
to  a  well-known  stationer ;  so,  immediately  upon  the 
ship's  arrival  in  London,  he  waited  upon  the  latter, 
delivering  him  the  letter  as  from  Governor  Keith. 

"I  don't  know  Governor  Keith,"  said  the 
stationer;  then,  opening  the  letter,  "Oh,  this  is 
from  Riddlesden!"  he  cried.  "I  have  lately 
found  him  a  complete  rascal,  and  1  will  have  nothing 
to  do  with  him."  And  returning  the  letter  to 
the  astonished  and  dismayed  Benjamin,  he  swung 
on  his  heel  and  left  him  to  serve  a  customer. 

It  was  then,  for  the  first  time,  that  Benjamin 
began  to  doubt  the  governor's  sincerity.  Among 
the  passengers  on  board  the  London-Hope  there  had 
been  a  Mr.  Denham,  a  Quaker  merchant  of  Phila- 
delphia; and  Benjamin  now  sought  him  out  and 
asked  his  advice.  Mr.  Denham  told  him  that  in 
all  probability  the  governor  had  written  no  letters 
at  all  for  him,  and  had  certainly  given  him  no 
money,  since  he  had  no  money  to  give.  No  one, 
continued  Mr.  Denham,  who  knew  Sir  William 
placed  any  faith  in  him.  He  was  noted  for  making 
promises  which  were  never  fulfilled. 


FRANKLIN  THE  JOURNEYMAN     39 

Astounded  and  thoroughly  disheartened  at 
what  he  had  heard,  Benjamin  discussed  the  situa- 
tion with  his  new  friend  and  confessed  that  he 
did  not  know  what  to  do.  Mr.  Denham  advised 
him  to  get  employment  in  some  printing-house 
in  London. 

"Among  the  printers  here,"  said  he,  "you  will 
improve  yourself,  and  when  you  return  to  America 
you  will  be  able  to  set  up  to  greater  advantage." 

Poor  Benjamin,  at  his  wits'  end,  and  with  scarcely 
enough  money  to  pay  for  his  return  passage, 
finally  decided  to  adopt  the  friendly  suggestion. 


CHAPTER  V 
THE  FIRST  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND 

IN  the  hope  of  bettering  his  fortune,  Benjamin's 
friend  James  Ralph  had  accompanied  him  to  Eng- 
land. He  had  spent  all  his  money  on  his  passage, 
and  Benjamin  had  only  about  fifty  dollars  left. 
They  decided  that  it  was  cheaper  to  live  together 
and  so  took  lodgings  in  a  narrow  old  street  called 
Little  Britain,  at  three  shillings  and  sixpence  a 
week. 

It  would  have  been  interesting  to  see  the  two 
young  strangers  as  they  wandered  about  the  big 
city  of  London.  No  greater  contrast  could  have 
been  found  than  that  between  our  two  young  men. 
Benjamin  was  slow  and  hesitating  in  speech, 
solemn  and  often  grave  in  his  manner,  intent  only 
on  making  his  way  in  the  world  and  becoming  a 
successful  man  of  business;  while  Ralph  was 
gay  and  sprightly,  an  excellent  talker,  handsome, 
and  very  much  at  his  ease.  Of  the  two  he  appeared 
to  have  the  better  chance  to  succeed. 

But  Benjamin  had  the  advantage  of  knowing  a 
40 


THE  FIRST  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND  41 

trade;  and  within  a  few  days  he  was  able  to  se- 
cure a  position  in  Palmer's  printing-house.  Ralph 
sought  in  vain  for  employment.  His  first  idea  was 
to  join  a  troup  of  actors,  but  no  manager  would 
take  him.  Then  he  proposed  to  a  publisher  to  start 
a  weekly  paper  something  like  the  "  Spectator." 
The  publisher  would  not  listen  to  him;  and 
finally  he  tried  to  get  odd  jobs  of  copying  legal 
papers  for  lawyers,  but  failed  even  in  that.  Mean- 
while, he  borrowed  from  Benjamin  and  depended 
on  him  to  pay  his  bills. 

For  some  months  the  two  youths  lived  from  hand 
to  mouth.  Then  Ralph  heard  of  a  position  as 
schoolmaster  in  a  country  school  and  decided  to 
take  it,  leaving  his  friend  without  even  offering 
to  repay  his  loans. 

While  he  was  at  Palmer's  printing-house  Benjamin 
wrote  a  little  pamphlet  called  "A  Dissertation  on 
Liberty  and  Neccessity,  Pleasure  and  Pain."  A 
copy  fell  into  the  hands  of  a  surgeon  named  Lyon, 
who  sought  out  the  young  author  and  made  his 
acquaintance.  He  took  Benjamin  to  "The  Horns," 
a  tavern  in  Cheapside,  and  introduced  him  to  Dr. 
Mandeville,  a  writer  and  well-known  wit.  The 
latter  was  the  leading  spirit  in  a  little  club  of  literary 
men  who  assembled  at  the  tavern.  Through  him 
and  Lyon,  Benjamin  made  many  friends  and 


42  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

listened  with  delight  to  their  conversation;  and 
though  only  twenty  years  old  he  took  part  in  their 
discussions  and  was  treated  almost  as  an  equal. 

It  happened  that  he  had  brought  with  him  from 
America  a  purse  made  of  asbestos.  This  curious 
material  was  then  a  great  rarity  and  not  many 
persons  in  England  knew  very  much  about  it. 
Sir  Hans  Sloane,  the  founder  of  the  British  Museum 
and  a  great  collector  of  curiosities,  heard  of  the 
purse,  and  called  upon  Benjamin  to  see  it.  He  was 
so  interested  in  it  that  he  at  once  paid  the  lad  a 
good  price  for  it,  and  took  him  to  his  house  in 
Bloomsbury  Square,  where  he  entertained  him 
handsomely. 

Thus  Benjamin,  with  his  wonderful  ability  to 
charm  and  attract,  soon  found  himself  well  sup- 
plied with  friends.  But  in  money  affairs  he  was 
not  so  successful,  and  he  had  been  in  London  al- 
most a  year  before  he  began  to  think  of  laying 
a  little  money  aside.  He  no  longer  had  James 
Ralph  to  take  care  of;  and,  in  the  hope  of  more 
profitable  work,  he  left  Palmer's  shop  and  secured 
a  position  in  Watts's  printing-house.  This  was  a 
much  larger  establishment  and  employed  more 
than  fifty  workmen. 

In  those  days  it  was  the  custom  of  printers  to 
drink  great  quantities  of  beer  during  their  working 


Repro*uetd  from  farfi  "  Tbe  Many  Sidrd  franklin  "  through  the  covrttiy  aflti 
Century  Company. 

PRESS  AT  WHICH  FRANKLIN  WORKED  IN  WATTS'S  PRINTING- 
OFFICE,  LONDON. 


THE  FIRST  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND  43 

hours.  "My  companion  at  the  press,"  says  Ben- 
jamin, "drank  every  day  a  pint  before  breakfast, 
a  pint  at  breakfast  with  his  bread  and  cheese,  a 
pint  between  breakfast  and  dinner,  a  pint  at  dinner, 
a  pint  in  the  afternoon  about  six  o'clock,  and  an- 
other when  he  had  done  his  day's  work."  Benjamin 
considered  it  a  detestable  practice,  and  drank  only 
water  himself.  At  first  the  workmen  laughed  at 
him  and  called  him  "the  Water- American."  But 
when  he  proved  to  them  that  he  was  stronger  than 
they  were,  they  began  to  wonder  and  could  not 
understand  how  he  could  keep  his  strength  with- 
out drinking  beer.  He  tried  to  convince  them 
that  there  was  more  nourishment  in  a  pennyworth 
of  bread  than  in  a  whole  quart  of  beer,  and  finally 
persuaded  a  number  of  them  to  give  up  the  drinking 
habit. 

At  Watts's  printing-house  he  made  the  ac- 
quaintance of  a  young  workman  named  Wygate 
and  won  his  admiration  by  teaching  him  to  swim 
in  two  lessons.  Wygate  came  from  a  good  family 
and  had  been  better  educated  than  most  printers. 
It  chanced  that  a  party  of  his  friends  from  the  coun- 
try were  then  stopping  in  London.  He  introduced 
Benjamin  to  them  and  they  went  on  many  little 
excursions  together.  One  day,  as  they  were 
returning  from  a  trip  on  the  Thames,  Benjamin, 


44  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

at  their  request,  stripped,  and  leaping  into  the  river, 
swam  from  Chelsea  to  Blackfriars,  a  distance  of 
four  miles.  They  were  astonished  at  his  skill, 
especially  at  some  feats  which  he  performed  both 
on  and  under  the  water.  Wygate,  who  wished 
to  become  as  great  a  master  of  the  sport,  grew 
more  attached  to  him  than  ever. 

It  was  shortly  after  this  incident  that  he  pro- 
posed to  Benjamin  that  they  should  leave  Watts's 
employment  and  travel  over  Europe  together, 
supporting  themselves  by  their  trade.  Benjamin 
rather  liked  the  idea ;  but  Mr.  Denham,  to  whom 
he  mentioned  it,  advised  him  to  return  to  Phila- 
delphia, and  offered  him  a  position  as  clerk  in  his 
store.  The  salary,  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars 
a  year,  was  less  than  Benjamin  was  getting  as  a 
printer,  but  there  was  greater  chance  for  advance- 
ment ;  so  Benjamin,  who  had  grown  tired  of  Lon- 
don and  his  life  there,  finally  accepted  the  mer- 
chant's offer. 

Mr.  Denham  was  already  making  preparations  to 
return,  and  the  lad  entered  his  employment  at 
once,  giving  up,  forever  as  he  supposed,  the  trade  of 
printer. 

He  had  said  good-by  to  his  friends  and  was  al- 
most ready  to  sail  when  Sir  William  Wyndham,  a 
former  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer,  and  a  very 


THE  FIRST  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND  45 

influential  man  in  London,  sent  for  him.  Ben- 
jamin knew  him  only  by  name.  Surprised  at  the 
summons,  he  responded  immediately.  Sir  William 
told  him  that  he  had  heard  of  his  skill  in  swimming 
and  wished  to  have  his  two  sons  taught.  He 
offered  to  pay  Benjamin  liberally,  but  as  neither 
of  Sir  William's  sons  had  yet  arrived  in  London, 
and  as  Benjamin's  stay  was  uncertain,  the  latter 
was  forced  to  refuse.  It  occurred  to  him,  however, 
that  if  he  were  to  remain  in  England  and  open  a 
swimming-school  he  might  earn  a  great  deal  of 
money ;  and  if  the  suggestion  had  been  made  to 
him  sooner,  it  is  possible  that  he  might  never  have 
returned  to  America. 

He  and  Mr.  Denham  sailed  from  Gravesend  on 
July  23,  1726,  and  landed  in  Philadelphia  on 
October  n,  after  a  voyage  of  eighty- two  days. 

Benjamin  had  spent  about  eighteen  months  in 
London.  Most  of  that  time  he  had  worked  hard 
and  saved  little.  He  had  by  no  means  improved 
his  fortune,  but  had  made  some  valuable  friends, 
and  had  acquired  a  knowledge  of  men  and  of  the 
world  which  was  to  be  of  immense  advantage  to 
him. 


CHAPTER  VI 
THE  JUNTO 

ON  his  arrival  in  Philadelphia  Benjamin  found 
several  changes.  Sir  William  Keith  was  no  longer 
governor,  while  Keimer  had  moved  his  shop  into 
larger  quarters,  had  supplied  it  with  stationery 
and  new  type,  had  a  number  of  workmen  under 
him,  and  appeared  to  be  very  prosperous. 

Mr.  Denham  took  a  building  in  Water  Street, 
where  he  opened  his  store.  Benjamin  attended 
diligently  to  the  business,  learned  how  to  keep 
accounts,  and  in  a  short  time  became  an  excellent 
salesman.  He  enjoyed  his  new  work  and  he  was 
fond  of  his  employer,  who  took  him  to  live  with 
him  and  treated  him  like  a  son.  The  next  few 
months  passed  very  happily.  Mr.  Denham  spoke 
of  giving  him  an  interest  in  the  business;  there 
was  even  talk  of  making  him  a  partner.  The 
future  appeared  bright  indeed,  and  Benjamin  had 
every  reason  to  believe  that  his  troubles  were  over, 
when  suddenly,  in  February,  1727,  both  he  and 
Mr.  Denham  were  taken  seriously  ill.  Benjamin 
recovered,  but  his  benefactor  died;  and  the  lad 
once  more  found  himself  without  employment. 

46 


THE  JUNTO  47 

His  account  of  his  own  sickness  is  rather  amus- 
ing. "My  distemper,"  he  says,  "was  a  pleurisy, 
which  very  nearly  carried  me  off.  I  suffered  a 
good  deal,  gave  up  the  point  in  my  own  mind,  and 
was  rather  disappointed  when  I  found  myself  re- 
covering, regretting  in  some  degree,  that  I  must 
now,  sometime  or  other,  have  all  that  disagreeable 
work  to  do  over  again." 

It  was  in  connection  with  this  illness  that  he  is 
supposed  to  have  written  his  famous  epitaph  on 
himself.  It  runs  as  follows: 


48  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

For  a  time  Benjamin  tried  to  find  employment 
as  a  merchant's  clerk.  Then  Keimer  made  him 
an  offer  to  take  over  the  management  of  his  print- 
ing-house; and  the  lad,  tempted  by  the  high 
wages,  decided  to  accept  the  position.  There  were 
five  men  and  a  boy  in  the  shop.  Although  Ben- 
jamin soon  discovered  that  Keimer's  intention  was 
to  have  him  train  these  raw  hands  and  then  get 
rid  of  him,  he  went  on  with  his  work  cheerfully, 
put  the  printing-house  in  order,  and  kept  the  other 
workmen  to  their  tasks. 

It  was  not  long  before  he  had  a  chance  to  show 
his  ingenuity.  Keimer  ran  out  of  type ;  and,  as  it 
would  take  a  long  time  to  procure  fresh  fonts  from 
England,  Benjamin  decided  to  make  them  him- 
self. He  had  never  cast  type,  but  he  had  seen 
it  done  in  London.  After  some  little  difficulty  he 
succeeded  in  fashioning  a  mold,  using  the  old  type 
as  puncheons  and  striking  the  letters  off  in  lead. 
Thus,  in  a^sense,  he  became  the  first  type-founder 
in  America. 

But  his  activities  did  not  stop  there.  Besides 
his  other  duties,  he  made  the  ink,  acted  as  ware- 
houseman, and  was  Keimer's  right-hand  man  and 
adviser;  while  on  several  occasions  he  even  tried 
his  skill  at  engraving. 

In  spite  of  his  ability  it  soon  became  apparent 


THE  JUNTO  49 

that  Keimer  was  only  waiting  for  an  opportunity 
to  dispense  with  his  services.  He  began  by  treating 
Benjamin  gruffly  and  rudely,  assuming  the  airs  of 
a  master  toward  him,  and  finding  fault  with  every- 
thing. The  lad  bore  it  patiently,  thinking  that 
business  troubles  were  partly  to  blame,  though  the 
time  came  when  even  he  could  stand  the  man's 
harshness  no  longer.  A  trifling  incident  caused 
another  separation. 

One  day  as  Benjamin  was  working  in  the  shop 
there  was  some  disturbance  outside.  He  put 
his  head  out  of  the  window  to  see  what  was  the 
matter.  Keimer,  who  happened  to  be  in  the  street, 
called  to  him  to  get  back  to  his  work  and  mind 
his  own  business.  The  man  spoke  angrily  and  in 
such  a  loud  voice  that  he  drew  the  attention  of 
the  neighbors,  and  Benjamin  found  himself  the 
center  of  all  eyes.  He  was  indignant  at  being 
treated  so  shamefully  in  public,  but  Keimer,  in- 
stead of  apologizing,  came  into  the  printing-house 
and  continued  the  quarrel.  Benjamin  answered 
him  with  spirit;  and  Keimer  immediately  gave 
him  the  three  months'  notice  to  quit  which  had  been 
agreed  upon  between  them.  His  only  wish,  he  con- 
cluded, was  that  he  could  get  rid  of  Benjamin  sooner. 
Benjamin  told  him  that  his  wish  was  unnecessary, 
and,  taking  his  hat,  walked  out  of  the  shop  at  once. 


50  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

In  the  evening  Hugh  Meredith,  one  of  Rentier's 
workmen,  came  to  see  him  at  his  lodgings.  Mere- 
dith was  of  Welsh  parentage  and  about  thirty 
years  of  age.  He  was  an  honest,  sensible  fellow, 
and  something  of  a  reader,  but  a  little  too  fond  of 
drink.  Benjamin  had  cured  him  of  this  habit 
to  some  extent,  and  in  consequence  the  man  had 
conceived  a  great  liking  for  him. 

Meredith  now  proposed  that  he  and  Benjamin 
should  go  into  partnership  and  set  up  a  shop  of 
their  own. 

"My  time,"  he  said,  "will  be  out  with  Keimer 
in  the  spring.  By  then  we  may  have  our  press 
and  type  from  London."  His  father,  he  added, 
would  advance  them  the  necessary  funds. 

Benjamin  agreed  to  the  proposition;  and  the 
supplies  were  ordered  from  England,  Meredith's 
father  promising  to  pay  the  bill.  Meanwhile  Ben- 
jamin was  to  pick  up  what  odd  work  he  could. 

For  a  few  days  he  remained  idle.  Then,  much 
to  his  surprise,  he  received  a  very  civil  message 
from  Keimer,  asking  him  to  return.  It  appeared 
that  the  Province  of  New  Jersey  was  about  to  have 
some  paper  money  engraved  and  printed.  Keimer, 
knowing  Benjamin's  skill  as  an  engraver,  wished 
to  secure  his  services  in  order  to  get  the  work. 
Meredith  persuaded  the  lad  to  accept  Keimer's 


THE  JUNTO  51 

offer;  and  once  more  Benjamin  went  back  to  his 
old  employer. 

Again  he  displayed  his  inventiveness  by  building 
a  copperplate  press  for  the  New  Jersey  work. 
This  was  the  first  copperplate  press  ever  made  in 
America. 

When  everything  was  ready,  he  and  Keimer  went 
to  Burlington,  where  the  work  was  to  be  done,  and 
stayed  there  three  months,  printing  the  paper 
money.  A  committee  had  been  appointed  to  at- 
tend to  the  work  and  see  that  no  more  bills  were 
printed  than  the  law  directed ;  and  through  these 
men  Benjamin  made  the  acquaintance  of  some  of 
the  principal  people  of  the  province.  Among 
his  new  friends  were  the  Secretary  of  New  Jersey, 
the  Surveyor-General,  and  several  members  of 
the  Assembly.  They  all  appeared  more  interested 
in  him  than  in  Keimer,  and  invited  him  to  their 
homes,  introduced  him  to  their  friends,  and 
showed  him  many  kindnesses.  In  later  years 
some  of  them  were  of  great  assistance  to  Benjamin 
in  procuring  him  work.  So,  once  again,  his  ability 
to  make  friends  and  to  keep  them  stood  him  in 
good  stead. 

He  and  Keimer  returned  to  Philadelphia  in  the 
spring  of  1728;  and  shortly  after  the  press  and 
type,  ordered  from  England,  arrived.  Benjamin  and 


52  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Meredith  made  a  friendly  settlement  with  Keimer 
and  left  him,  to  set  up  their  own  establishment. 

It  was  during  this  period  that  Benjamin  formed 
his  famous  club  called  the  Junto.  It  was  made  up 
of  young  men  of  his  own  age ;  the  membership  was 
limited  to  twelve ;  and  its  object  was  the  mutual 
improvement  of  its  members.  Properly  speak- 
ing, it  was  a  debating  society.  It  met  every  Friday 
evening,  at  first  at  a  tavern,  but  later  at  the  home 
of  one  of  its  members,  Robert  Grace,  "a  gentle- 
man," Benjamin  says,  "of  some  fortune,  generous, 
lively,  and  witty,  a  lover  of  punning  and  of  his 
friends." 

One  of  the  rules  of  the  club  was  that  its  existence 
should  be  kept  a  secret.  This  was  to  keep  unde- 
sirable persons  from  applying  for  admission.  A 
candidate,  when  qualifying  for  the  club,  was 
made  to  stand  up,  and,  laying  his  hand  upon  his 
breast,  declare  that  he  had  no  particular  disrespect 
for  any  member  of  the  Junto ;  that  he  loved  man- 
kind in  general  of  whatever  profession  or  religion ; 
that  he  thought  no  person  ought  to  be  harmed  in 
his  body,  name,  or  goods,  for  his  opinions  or  for 
his  outward  form  of  worship;  and  that  he  loved 
truth  for  truth's  sake,  and  would  try  impartially 
to  find  and  receive  it  himself  and  communicate 
it  to  others. 


THE  JUNTO  53 

Some  of  the  questions  which  they  debated  have 
been  preserved  and  show  the  wide  range  of  sub- 
jects which  were  discussed.  Here  are  a  few  of  them : 
"How  may  the  phenomena  of  vapors  be  ex- 
plained?" "Can  any  particular  form  of  govern- 
ment suit  all  mankind  ?  "  "What  is  the  reason  that 
the  tides  rise  higher  in  the  Bay  of  Fundy  than  in 
the  Bay  of  Delaware? "  "What  is  the  reason  that 
men  of  the  greatest  knowledge  are  not  the  most 
happy?"  "How  may  the  possession  of  the  Lakes 
be  improved  to  our  advantage?"  "How  may 
smoky  chimneys  be  best  cured?"  "Why  does 
the  flame  of  a  candle  tend  upwards  in  a  spire?" 

Besides  the  Friday  night  gatherings  the  club 
met  once  a  month  during  the  pleasant  season  of 
the  year  at  "some  proper  place  across  the  river, 
for  bodily  exercise."  And  at  least  once  every 
summer  the  members  dined  together,  cracked 
jokes,  and  sang  the  jovial  songs  of  the  day. 

In  spite  of  the  secrecy  which  surrounded  it, 
rumors  of  the  club's  existence  got  abroad,  and 
applications  for  membership  began  to  pour  in. 
Benjamin  was  opposed  to  increasing  the  number  of 
members,  but  suggested  that  each  member  should 
form  a  separate  club  of  his  own,  and  thus  extend 
the  good  influence  of  the  Junto.  His  suggestion 
was  acted  upon ;  and  five  or  six  clubs  were  formed. 


54  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

They  were  called  by  such  names  as  the  Vine,  the 
Union,  and  the  Band;  but  how  successful  they 
were,  and  how  long  they  lasted,  is  unknown. 

The  Junto  itself  remained  in  existence  for  more 
than  forty  years.  All  his  life  Franklin  showed 
great  fondness  for  it.  In  letters  written  in  1765-66, 
while  he  was  abroad,  he  calls  it  "the  good  old 
club,"  and  wishes  "  to  be  remembered  affectionately 
to  the  Junto."  But  what  makes  this  club  of  partic- 
ular importance  is  the  fact  that  out  of  it  grew  the 
American  Philosophical  Society,  an  association 
which  still  exists  in  Philadelphia  and  numbers  among 
its  members  learned  men  from  all  over  the  world. 
As  with  the  Junto,  its  principal  object  is  the  pur- 
suit of  knowledge ;  but,  unlike  the  Junto,  its  pro- 
ceedings are  not  kept  secret ;  for  its  many  publica- 
tions are  valued  everywhere  for  their  depth  and 
learning.  It  is  the  oldest  society  of  its  kind  in 
America,  and  the  most  famous.  And  Benjamin 
Franklin,  the  founder  and  leading  spirit  of  the 
Junto  from  which  it  sprang,  had  the  honor  of 
being  its  first  president. 


CHAPTER  VH 

FRANKLIN  THE  PRINTE* 

IN  1728  Pennsylvania  was  the  largest  and  most 
thriving  colony  in  America,  and  Philadelphia  the 
most  important  city.  There  were  two  causes  for 
this.  In  the  first  place  William  Perm,  the  founder 
of  the  colony,  had  placed  all  of  the  religious  sects 
on  an  equality  and  had  insisted  on  absolute  reli- 
gious freedom ;  and  secondly,  the  people  enjoyed 
peace  with  the  Indians.  Emigrants  from  Europe 
were  quick  to  realize  these  advantages,  and  flocked 
to  Pennsylvania  in  crowds. 

For  a  long  time  Philadelphia  itself  remained 
what  Perm  wished  it  to  be  —  "a  green  country 
place."  It  stretched  for  about  a  mile  along  the 
Delaware  River,  and  ran  back  half  a  mile  or  so  into 
the  country.  The  houses  were  either  of  stone  or 
brick ;  each  house  stood  apart  from  its  neighbors 
and  each  had  its  own  garden  and  trees.  The  cows 
of  the  inhabitants  grazed  together  on  the  pasture 
lands  lying  on  the  outskirts  of  the  town.  It  is  said 
that  peaches  were  so  plentiful  that  the  pigs  were 

55 


56  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

fed  on  them.  Surely  these  were  lucky  pigs,  for 
Pennsylvania  peaches  are  famous  to-day  for  their 
size  and  fine  flavor. 

The  people  used  the  ground  floors  of  their  dwell- 
ing houses  for  shops,  and  lived  in  the  upper  stories ; 
a  wooden  beehive,  ship,  anchor,  crown,  or  some 
similar  device  being  hung  over  the  front  door  as  the 
distinguishing  sign  of  the  store.  The  streets  were 
laid  out  at  right  angles  to  each  other;  and  along 
the  middle  of  the  sidewalks  ran  a  narrow  flagging 
as  a  pavement,  with  rows  of  neatly  painted  posts 
stretching  on  either  side. 

In  this  large,  shady  village  —  for  that  was  what 
Philadelphia  really  was  —  Franklin  and  Meredith 
set  up  their  new  printing-shop.  The  house  was 
on  Market  Street.  They  paid  a  hundred  dollars 
a  year  rent,  and  relet  the  greater  part  of  the  build- 
ing to  a  glazier  named  Thomas  Godfrey,  who  lived 
in  the  upper  stories  with  his  family. 

Scarcely  had  they  opened  their  doors  when  a 
friend  of  Franklin's  brought  in  a  young  country- 
man whom  he  had  found  on  the  street  looking 
for  a  printer.  The  young  firm  did  his  work,  for 
which  they  were  paid  five  shillings.  It  was  indeed 
a  small  sum,  but,  said  Franklin  later,  "being  our 
first  fruits,  and  coming  so  seasonably,  it  gave  me 
more  pleasure  than  any  crown  I  have  since  earned." 


FRANKLIN    THE    PRINTER  57 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  other  work  was 
given  them.  Joseph  Breintnal,  a  member  of  the 
Junto,  was  a  man  of  influence  with  the  Quakers, 
and  through  them  he  procured  for  the  young  men 
the  printing  of  forty  sheets  giving  the  history  of 
their  sect.  The  price  to  be  paid  was  very  low,  but 
it  was  a  matter  of  pride  with  Franklin  to  get  the 
work  done  quickly,  and  he  set  up  a  sheet  a  day 
until  the  whole  forty  were  finished.  To  do  this  he 
was  often  obliged  to  work  at  night,  and  sometimes 
he  did  not  get  to  bed  until  nearly  midnight,  long 
after  the  rest  of  the  town  was  asleep. 

Franklin's  industry  and  close  attention  to  his 
trade  were  soon  noticed  and  spoken  of  by  the  towns- 
people, and  they  began  to  bring  him  odd  jobs  of  all 
kinds. 

It  had  long  been  his  desire  to  publish  a  news- 
paper, and  now  that  he  was  in  business  for  himself 
he  began  to  make  his  plans  toward  founding  one. 
Andrew  Bradford's  paper,  the  Mercury,  was  the 
only  news  sheet  then  printed  in  Philadelphia,  and 
this  was  so  poor  that  the  chance  for  establishing  a 
rival  paper  and  making  a  success  of  it  appeared 
excellent.  While  Franklin  was  perfecting  his 
scheme,  George  Webb,  one  of  Keimer's  workmen, 
applied  to  him  for  a  position.  Franklin  told  him 
that  he  hoped  to  be  able  to  employ  him  soon,  and 


58  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

in  strict  confidence  explained  to  Webb  his  scheme 
for  the  projected  paper.  Webb  revealed  the  secret 
to  Keimer,  who  clutched  at  the  idea  and  decided 
to  issue  a  paper  of  his  own.  He  engaged  Webb  to 
help  him  print  it,  and  on  December  24,  1728,  the 
first  number  of  the  journal  appeared.  It  was  called 
by  the  pompous  name  of  the  Universal  Instructor 
in  all  Arts  and  Sciences,  and  Pennsylvania  Gazette. 

Franklin  was  naturally  indignant  at  Webb's  act, 
and  after  Keimer's  paper  had  been  running  a  month 
he  hit  upon  a  clever  scheme  to  draw  the  public's 
attention  from  its  weekly  issues.  Remembering 
his  success  in  Boston  with  his  "Letters  of  Mrs. 
Silence  Dogood,"  he  began  a  similar  series  in  Brad- 
ford's paper,  the  Mercury,  and  signed  them  "Busy- 
Body."  Joseph  Breintnal  and  other  members  of 
the  Junto  helped  him  in  writing  them,  and  they  soon 
began  to  make  a  great  stir  in  the  city.  Keimer 
took  offense  at  one  of  them,  which  he  thought  re- 
ferred to  himself,  and  answered  it  in  his  paper. 
Franklin  replied  in  the  Mercury,  and  turned  the 
tables  so  neatly  on  his  old  employer  that  all  the 
advantage  was  on  his  side. 

Through  Franklin's  articles  the  Mercury's  circu- 
lation increased  while  the  number  of  Keimer's 
subscribers  grew  less  and  less.  Finally  he  had 
only  ninety,  and,  unable  to  carry  on  his  paper  any 


FRANKLIN   THE    PRINTER  59 

longer,  he  was  only  too  glad  to  sell  it  to  Franklin 
and  Meredith  for  a  very  small  sum.  On  October 
2,  1729,  the  first  number,  edited  by  Franklin,  was 
issued.  He  changed  the  style  of  the  paper  com- 
pletely, cut  out  a  lot  of  dry  and  uninteresting 
articles  which  Keimer  had  copied  from  books  in 
order  to  fill  space,  substituted  in  their  place  news 
items  and  matters  of  general  interest,  and  short- 
ened the  long  and  nonsensical  name  of  the  journal 
to  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette. 

The  success  of  the  paper  was  immediate.  When 
only  three  numbers  had  appeared  the  young  pub- 
lishers announced  that  they  had  met  with  sufficient 
encouragement  to  induce  them  to  continue  the 
paper  and  increase  their  facilities  for  obtaining 
news.  "We  shall  from  time  to  time,"  they  stated, 
"have  all  the  noted  Publick  Prints  from  Great 
Britain,  New  England,  New  York,  Maryland  and 
Jamaica,  besides  what  News  may  be  collected  from 
private  Letters  and  Informations;  and  we  doubt 
not  of  continuing  to  give  our  Customers  all  the 
Satisfaction  they  expect  from  a  Performance  of 
this  Nature." 

This  announcement  shows  the  difficulty  in  ob- 
taining news.  With  no  wireless,  cable,  or  tele- 
graph, and  with  only  occasional  mails,  the  editors 
of  papers  had  a  hard  time  collecting  information, 


60  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

and  sometimes  foreign  news  was  six  months  old 
before  it  was  published  in  America.  It  was  Frank- 
lin's object  to  get  the  news  and  print  it  as  quickly 
as  possible,  and  he  succeeded  so  well  that  the  Penn- 
sylvania Gazette  soon  became  the  only  real  news- 
paper in  this  country. 

For  years  Bradford  had  done  the  public  printing 
for  the  colony.  In  1729  he  printed  the  "Gov- 
ernor's Address  "  as  usual,  but  he  did  it  so  badly  and 
incorrectly  that  Franklin  struck  off  an  edition  of 
his  own,  and  sent  a  copy  to  each  of  the  thirty  mem- 
bers of  the  Assembly.  As  a  result  he  was  given 
.the  printing  for  the  Assembly  for  the  coming  year ; 
and  when,  a  little  later,  a  new  issue  of  paper  money 
was  decided  upon,  the  work  of  engraving  and  print- 
ing it  was  also  turned  over  to  him. 

But  in  spite  of  growing  business  the  young  firm 
still  remained  in  debt.  It  had  cost  them  a  thou- 
sand dollars  to  set  up  their  shop.  Owing  to  some 
misfortunes,  Meredith's  father  had  been  able  to 
advance  only  half  of  this  sum.  The  remainder 
they  owed  to  the  merchant  who  had  imported  their 
supplies  for  them,  and  this  man,  becoming  impa- 
tient at  their  delay  in  paying  him,  finally  started 
suit. 

It  was  at  this  juncture  that  help  appeared  from 
an  unexpected  quarter.  William  Coleman  and 


FRANKLIN    THE    PRINTER  61 

Robert  Grace,  two  members  of  the  Junto,  came  to 
Franklin  separately  and  offered  to  advance  him 
sufficient  money  to  enable  him  to  take  over  the 
whole  business  and  buy  Meredith  out.  Franklin 
told  them  that  he  could  not  propose  a  separation 
as  long  as  Meredith  wished  to  continue  his  partner. 
But  it  happened  that  Meredith  himself  had  begun 
to  realize  that  he  was  a  failure  in  the  printing  trade, 
and  suggested  to  Franklin  that  they  dissolve  the 
firm.  Franklin  accepted  the  proposal,  borrowed 
five  hundred  dollars  from  each  of  his  two  friends, 
paid  off  Meredith's  father  and  the  merchant  who 
had  sued  them,  and,  his  own  master  at  last,  went 
on  with  the  business  alone. 

Meanwhile  Franklin  had  quite  lost  his  heart  to 
a  charming  young  widow,  a  Mrs.  Rogers,  who  was 
no  other  than  the  Deborah  Read  whom  he  had 
known  and  admired  as  a  young  girl ;  and  on  Sep- 
tember i  of  the  year  1730  they  were  married. 
Mrs.  Franklin  proved  to  be  a  thrifty,  industrious 
wife,  and  soon  became  of  great  help  to  her  husband. 
She  took  care  of  the  house,  tended  the  tiny  shop, 
bought  rags  for  the  paper-mill,  stitched  pamphlets, 
folded  newspapers,  and  did  a  thousand  and  one 
little  things  to  aid  him  in  his  business. 

At  first  they  were  very  poor  and  lived  simply. 
"My  breakfast,"  says  Franklin,  "was,  for  a  long 


62  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

time,  bread  and  milk  (no  tea),  and  I  ate  it  out  of  a 
twopenny  earthen  porringer,  with  a  pewter  spoon ; 
but  mark  how  luxury  will  enter  families,  and  make 
a  progress  in  spite  of  principle;  being  called  one 
morning  to  breakfast,  I  found  it  in  a  china  bowl, 
with  a  spoon  of  silver.  They  had  been  bought  for 
me  without  my  knowledge  by  my  wife,  and  had 
cost  her  the  enormous  sum  of  three-and-twenty 
shillings;  for  which  she  had  no  other  excuse  or 
apology  to  make,  but  that  she  thought  her  hus- 
band deserved  a  silver  spoon  and  china  bowl  as 
well  as  any  of  his  neighbors." 

This,  of  course,  was  later,  when  he  was  well  es- 
tablished in  business  and  had  money  at  his  com- 
mand ;  but  it  shows  the  thrift  and  frugality  which 
marked  his  whole  life,  and  to  which  his  wife,  in  a 
great  measure,  contributed. 

It  was  while  he  was  still  almost  penniless  that 
he  drew  up  the  plan  for  his  second  great  project 
for  the  advancement  of  learning  —  the  foundation 
of  a  public  subscription  library.  Of  this  we  shall 
learn  more  in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

POOR  RICHARD'S  ALMANAC 

IT  had  been  the  custom  for  members  of  the  Junto 
to  keep  what  books  they  owned  in  the  club  room, 
where  they  might  be  used  by  the  other  members. 
One  end  of  the  room  was  set  aside  for  books,  and 
soon  they  had  a  very  respectable  library;  but 
when  some  of  the  books  became  injured  and  torn 
from  rough  handling,  their  owners  refused  to  allow 
them  to  remain  in  circulation  any  longer  and  took 
them  away.  It  was  then  that  Franklin  conceived 
the  idea  of  a  public  circulating  library  —  probably 
the  first  of  its  kind  in  the  world. 

His  plan  was  to  raise  enough  money  by  subscrip- 
tion for  the  purchase  of  books  abroad,  and  then 
have  each  subscriber  pay  two  dollars  and  a  half  a 
year  for  the  increase  of  the  library.  The  sub- 
scriber, on  his  side,  was  to  be  allowed  to  borrow 
what  books  he  wished  for  reading  in  his  own  home. 
Franklin  fixed  the  initial  subscription  at  ten  dollars ; 
but,  though  the  amount  was  small,  he  had  great 
difficulty  in  securing  subscribers ;  and  it  was  not 

63 


64  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

until  March,  1732,  that  fifty  names  had  been  ob- 
tained and  all  the  money  collected. 

A  list  of  books  was  immediately  made  out  and 
sent  to  England,  and  in  October  the  first  ship- 
ment arrived.  The  books  were  placed  in  the  Junto 
room,  a  librarian  was  appointed,  and  the  infant 
library  was  formally  opened. 

It  was  a  success  from  the  beginning,  and  soon 
had  to  move  to  larger  quarters.  During  the  sec- 
ond year  of  its  existence  Franklin  himself  acted  as 
librarian,  and  printed  a  catalogue  of  the  books. 
For  this,  and  for  other  printing,  he  was  excused  from 
paying  his  annual  dues  for  two  years.  He  found 
the  institution  of  immense  benefit  to  him.  "This 
library,"  he  says,  "afforded  me  the  means  of  im- 
provement by  constant  study,  for  which  I  set  apart 
an  hour  or  two  each  day  and  thus  repair'd  in  some 
degree  the  loss  of  the  learned  education  my  father 
once  intended  for  me.  Reading  was  the  only 
amusement  I  allow'd  myself." 

Other  libraries  of  a  similar  character  soon  sprang 
up  all  over  the  country.  To-day  they  are  num- 
bered by  the  thousands.  The  original  library  — 
"The  Library  Company  of  Philadelphia,"  as  it  is 
called  —  still  exists  in  Philadelphia.  It  is  the  larg- 
est and  best  library  in  that  city.  With  its  branches 
it  contains  more  than  240,000  volumes.  The  parent 


POOR   RICHARD'S   ALMANAC  65 

of  all  public  libraries,  it  is  a  lasting  monument  to 
Benjamin  Franklin's  foresight,  public  spirit,  and 
energy. 

It  was  in  December  of  this  same  year,  1732,  that 
he  issued  the  first  number  of  his  famous  almanac. 
In  those  days  almost  every  printer  in  America  ap- 
pears to  have  published  an  almanac.  It  was  a  part 
of  his  business,  and  generally  a  source  of  profit. 
Besides  giving  the  days  of  the  week  and  of  the 
month,  as  modern  calendars  do,  the  almanacs  gave 
the  changes  of  the  moon,  the  dates  of  eclipses,  the 
positions  of  the  planets  and  other  stars,  and  even 
attempted  to  foretell  the  weather. 

Until  Franklin's  almanac  appeared  there  was  no 
attempt  to  include  in  them  any  wit  and  humor. 
They  were  serious  pamphlets,  and  acted  as  guides 
to  the  people,  especially  to  the  farmers.  They 
were  generally  published  under  the  name  of  some 
man  of  learning  who  had  furnished  —  or  was  sup- 
posed to  have  furnished  —  the  material  for  them. 

Franklin  wrote  his  own,  but  took  the  name  of 
Richard  Saunder,  or  Saunders,  an  English  scholar 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  called  his  publi- 
cation "Poor  Richard's  Almanac."  As  an  almanac 
it  was  neither  better  nor  worse  than  the  other  half 
dozen  publications  of  a  similar  kind  then  printed 
in  Pennsylvania;  but  what  made  it  far  superior 


66  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

to  them  were  the  quaint  and  witty  sayings  and 
maxims  scattered  through  its  pages.  Their  in- 
troduction into  a  pamphlet  of  that  character  was 
something  entirely  original,  and  came  about  in  a 
curious  way.  "Observing,"  says  Franklin,  "that 
it  [the  almanac]  was  generally  read,  scarce  any 
neighborhood  in  the  province  being  without  it,  I 
consider'd  it  as  a  proper  vehicle  for  conveying  in- 
struction among  the  common  people,  who  bought 
scarcely  any  other  books ;  I  therefore  filled  all  the 
little  spaces  that  occurr'd  between  the  remarkable 
days  in  the  calendar  with  proverbial  sentences, 
chiefly  such  as  inculcated  industry  and  frugality." 
Here  again  his  spirit  of  thrift  and  economy  stood 
him  in  good  stead,  and  suggested  the  idea  of  using 
the  blank  spaces  in  his  almanac  for  the  insertion 
of  proverbs  and  sayings,  many  of  which  have  since 
become  world-famous. 

They  were  not  all  of  his  own  invention.  He 
himself  admits  that  they  were  taken  from  many 
sources  and  were  "the  wisdom  of  many  ages  and 
nations."  Yet  every  one  of  them  bears  the  mark 
of  his  own  peculiar  individuality  and  wit ;  and  in 
some  instances  he  even  improved  on  the  originals. 

Here,  at  random,  are  a  few  of  the  best  known  of 
them :  "A  word  to  the  wise  is  enough."  "Three 
may  keep  a  secret  if  two  of  them  are  dead."  "It 


POOR  RICHARD'S  ALMANAC  67 

is  hard  for  an  empty  sack  to  stand  upright." 
"Deny  self  for  self's  sake."  "Keep  thy  shop  and 
thy  shop  will  keep  thee."  "Forewarned,  fore- 
armed." "Diligence  is  the  mother  of  good  luck." 
"Wealth  is  not  his  that  has  it,  but  his  that  enjoys 
it."  "God  heals,  and  the  doctor  takes  the  fee." 
"He  that  can  have  patience  can  have  what  he 
will."  "Let  thy  discontents  be  thy  secrets." 
"He  that  falls  in  love  with  himself,  will  have  no 
rivals."  "Onions  can  make  even  heirs  and  widows 
weep."  "He  that  would  have  a  short  Lent,  let 
him  borrow  money  to  be  repaid  at  Easter."  "  There 
are  three  faithful  friends,  an  old  wife,  an  old  dog, 
and  ready  money." 

The  almanac  was  an  immediate  success.  Three 
editions  of  the  first  issue  were  sold  in  a  month,  and 
the  average  sale  for  the  whole  twenty-five  years, 
during  which  Franklin  edited  it  was  never  under 
ten  thousand  copies.  As  a  preface  to  his  almanac 
for  1758,  the  last  one  he  personally  published,  he 
collected  most  of  the  best  known  of  Poor  Richard's, 
sayings  and  formed  them  into  a  sort  of  connected 
discourse,  supposed  to  be  the  speech  of  a  wise  old 
man  to  the  people  attending  an  auction  sale.  It 
was  a  brilliant  piece  of  writing,  and  before  long  was 
copied  and  quoted  everywhere.  Even  to-day  it  is 
one  of  the  most  popular  things  in  American  liter- 


68  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

ature.  There  have  been  no  less  than  seventy-five 
editions  of  it  in  English,  fifty-six  in  French,  eleven 
in  German,  and  nine  in  Italian ;  and  it  has  been 
translated  into  almost  every  language  in  the  world, 
including  Russian  and  Chinese. 

The  immense  sale  of  the  first  issue  of  the  alma- 
nac gave  Franklin,  for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  a 
little  extra  money.  A  part  of  this  he  spent  in  send- 
ing one  of  his  best  workmen  to  Charleston,  South 
Carolina,  where  there  was  no  printer,  and  setting 
him  up  in  business  there.  Under  the  agreement 
Franklin  received  one  third  of  the  profits.  The 
scheme  proved  so  successful  that  later  he  made 
similar  arrangements  with  several  other  of  his 
workmen,  and  not  only  enabled  them  to  start 
in  business  for  themselves,  but  established  print- 
ing presses  in  parts  of  the  country  which  until 
then  had  none. 

Meanwhile  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette  had  pros- 
pered, and  was  the  leading  newspaper  of  the  col- 
ony. Measured  by  modern  standards  its  news 
would  seem  meager ;  but  compared  with  other 
journals  of  the  day  it  stands  in  a  place  by  itself. 
Its  superiority  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  Mer- 
cury and  other  of  its  contemporaries  did  not  scruple 
to  steal  from  its  columns.  The  following  statement, 
printed  in  his  paper,  is  a  good  example  of  the 


POOR  RICHARD'S  ALMANAC  69 

humorous  way  in  which  Franklin  called  his  rivals 
to  account : 

"  When  Mr.  Bradford  publishes  after  us,  and  has  Occasion 
to  take  an  Article  or  two  out  of  the  Gazette,  which  he  is 
always  welcome  to  do,  he  is  desired  not  to  date  his  Paper  a 
Day  before  ours,  (as  last  Week  in  the  Case  of  the  Letter 
containing  Kelsey's  Speech  &c.)  lest  distant  Readers  should 
imagine  we  take  from  him,  which  we  always  carefully 
avoid." 

He  was  so  encouraged  by  the  success  of  the 
Gazette  that  three  years  after  he  had  bought  it  he 
started  the  publication  of  a  fortnightly  paper  in 
German.  It  was  called  the  Philadelphische  Zeitung, 
and  was  for  the  benefit  of  the  many  Germans  who 
had  settled  in  Pennsylvania ;  and  though  it  never 
had  the  circulation  of  the  Gazette,  it  was  of  consid- 
erable profit  to  its  owner,  and  had  the  distinction 
of  being  the  first  paper  printed  in  a  foreign  language 
in  America. 

Aside  from  its  news  and  its  breezy,  up-to-date 
articles  on  matters  of  general  interest,  there  was 
still  another  cause  for  the  prosperity  of  the  Gazette. 
This  was  its  advertisements.  Before  Franklin's 
time  advertisements  in  the  papers  were  few,  and 
related  generally  to  runaway  servants  and  sales  of 
lands  and  goods.  Franklin  advertised  everything, 
and  was  so  successful  that  the  advertisements  alone 


70  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

in  the  Gazette  took  up  four  or  five  pages  —  a  space 
unheard  of  in  either  the  colonies  or  England. 

As  a  rule  advertisements  are  stupid  things  to 
read ;  but  Franklin  knew  how  to  make  them  in- 
teresting and  amusing,  and  many  of  those  he  wrote 
are  full  of  humor.  This  is  especially  true  of  such 
as  relate  to  himself  or  to  his  family.  The  follow- 
ing refers  to  a  pet  horse  or  pony  belonging  to  his 
young  son  William : 

"Strayed,  about  two  Months  ago,  from  the  Northern 
Liberties  of  this  City,  a  small  bay  Mare,  branded  IW  on 
the  near  Shoulder  and  Buttock.  She  being  but  little  and 
barefooted,  cannot  be  supposed  to  be  gone  far;  therefore 
if  any  of  the  Town-Boys  find  her  and  bring  her  to  the 
Subscriber,  they  shall,  for  their  Trouble,  have  the  Liberty 
to  ride  her  when  they  please,  from 

"WILLIAM  FRANKLIN." 

Another  advertisement  refers  to  the  loss  of  his 
wife's  prayer-book ;  and  the  finder  is  admonished, 
with  humor  and  force,  that  its  speedy  return  is 
expected : 

"Taken  out  of  a  pew  in  the  Church,  some  months  since," 
it  reads,  "a  Common  Prayer  Book,  bound  in  red,  gilt,  and 
lettered  D.  F.  on  each  cover.  The  person  who  took  it  is 
desired  to  open  it,  and  read  the  Eighth  Commandment, 
and  afterwards  return  it  into  the  same  pew  again ;  upon 
which  no  further  notice  will  be  taken." 


POOR  RICHARD'S  ALMANAC  71 

A  third  shows  Franklin's  generosity  in  lending 
books  and  the  trouble  he  had  in  having  them  re- 
turned to  him : 

"The  Person  that  borrowed  B.  Franklin's  Law-Book  of 
this  Province,  is  hereby  desired  to  return  it,  he  having  forgot 
to  whom  he  lent  it." 

And  in  still  another  advertisement  Franklin 
informs  his  readers  that  "He  has  in  his  Hands  the 
2d  vol.  of  Cowley's  Works,  in  Octavo,  of  which  he 
does  not  know  the  Owner." 

Besides  these,  and  many  similar  ones,  the  Gazette 
was  filled  with  advertisements  relating  to  his  bus- 
iness, and  the  wares  that  he  had  for  sale  at  his 
printing-office ;  and  from  the  number  and  variety 
of  the  articles,  he  must  have  carried  a  curious 
assortment  of  goods  in  his  little  shop.  In  one 
issue  we  read  that  there  has  been 

"Just  imported,  another  Parcel  of 
SUPER  FINE  CROWN  SOAP," 

which  "is  cut  in  exact  and  equal  cakes  neatly  put 
up,  and  sold  at  the  New  Printing  Office  at  is  per 
cake;"  while  another  notice  informs  us  that  the 
"Widow  Read"  (his  wife's  mother)  has  "removed 
from  the  upper  End  of  High  street  to  the  New 
Printing-Office  near  the  Market,"  where  she  "con- 


72  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

tinues  to  make  and  sell  her  excellent  Family  Salve 
or  Ointment,  for  Burns  or  Scalds,  (Price  is  an 
Ounce)"  and  "At  the  same  Place  may  be  had 
Lockyer's  Pills  at  3d  a  Pill." 

At  various  other  times  he  advertises  "  Very  good 
lampblack;"  "Very  good  chocolate;"  "Very 
good  Sack  at  65  per  Gallon;"  "Linseed  Oil;" 
"Compasses  and  Scales;"  "Seneka  Rattlesnake 
Root,  with  directions  to  use  it  in  the  Pleurisy  &c. ; " 
"A  very  neat  new  fashion'd  vehicle  or  four-wheel'd 
chaise,  very  convenient  to  carry  weak  or  other  sick 
persons  young  or  old;"  "Good  Rhode  Island 
Cheese  and  Cod  Fish ; "  "  Very  good  Iron  Stoves ; " 
"Choice  Bohea  Tea;"  "A  New  Fishing  Net;" 
besides  books,  pamphlets,  and  stationery  supplies 
of  every  description. 

It  must  have  been  a  strange  little  shop  with  all 
these  things  for  sale  in  it;  but  Franklin  was 
always  quick  to  grasp  an  opportunity,  and  he 
turned  many  an  honest  penny  in  his  numerous 
ventures.  It  was  this  practical  insight,  coupled 
with  his  extraordinary  energy  and  common  sense, 
that  made  him  the  successful  man  of  affairs,  and 
enabled  him,  during  the  twenty-odd  years  of  his 
active  business  career,  to  acquire  a  comfortable 
fortune. 


CHAPTER  IX 

FRANKLIN  THE  CITIZEN 

WELL  established  in  business,  and  with  the 
foundations  of  his  fortune  securely  laid,  Franklin 
turned  his  attention  to  the  needs  of  the  city,  and 
of  his  fellow  townsmen,  and  soon  began  to  take  a 
leading  part  in  public  affairs.  From  1728  until 
about  1756  —  a  period  which  marked  his  contin- 
uous residence  in  Philadelphia  —  he  was  identified 
with  practically  every  important  reform.  In  many 
cases  he  conceived  them  himself,  and  carried  them, 
almost  unaided,  to  successful  conclusions. 

His  usual  way  of  procedure  was  to  read,  at  a 
meeting  of  the  Junto,  an  article  dealing  with  the 
reform  proposed.  When  the  matter  had  been 
thoroughly  discussed,  he  would  communicate  the 
plan  to  the  clubs  in  correspondence  with  the  Junto ; 
and,  finally,  he  would  publish  the  complete  idea  in 
the  Gazette. 

In  this  way  he  started  public  discussion  which 
resulted  in  abolishing  the  "town  watch."  This 
was  a  poor  and  inefficient  organization.  The  con- 

73 


74  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

stable  of  each  ward  of  the  city  summoned  a  number 
of  householders  to  patrol  the  streets  with  him  at 
night.  Those  who  chose  could  be  excused  by  pay- 
ing a  dollar  and  a  half  a  year.  This  was  supposed 
to  pay  for  the  hire  of  a  substitute,  but  in  reality 
it  went  into  the  constable's  pocket,  and  the  streets 
at  night  were  left  unguarded.  To  remedy  this 
evil  Franklin  suggested  that  proper  men  be  hired 
as  regular  constables,  and  that  the  householders 
be  taxed,  according  to  the  value  of  their  properties, 
to  pay  for  them.  At  first  there  was  great  opposi- 
tion to  his  idea,  but  in  time  it  was  approved  and 
adopted,  and  the  first  step  was  taken  toward  found- 
ing a  permanent  police  force  in  Philadelphia. 

In  a  similar  manner  he  was  instrumental  in  es- 
tablishing a  volunteer  fire  department,  and  he 
himself  formed  the  Union  Fire  Company,  the  first 
of  its  kind  in  Philadelphia.  Each  member  was 
obliged  to  keep  ready  and  in  good  order  six  leather 
buckets  and  two  strong  bags,  for  carrying  goods 
out  of  burning  houses ;  to  go  at  once  to  every  fire 
with  at  least  half  of  his  buckets  and  bags ;  and  to 
do  his  utmost  to  help  put  out  the  flames.  This 
company  remained  in  active  service  as  late  as  1791, 
and  at  that  time  headed  the  list  of  numerous  other 
fire  companies  in  the  city,  having  thirty  members, 
one  engine,  two  hundred  and  fifty  buckets,  thir- 


FRANKLIN  THE  CITIZEN  75 

teen  ladders,  two  hooks,  and  one  eighty-foot  rope, 
-but  no  "bags"! 

In  1736  Franklin  was  appointed  clerk  of  the 
Pennsylvania  Assembly,  and  in  the  following  year 
he  was  made  deputy-postmaster  of  Philadelphia. 
Neither  of  these  positions  was  very  important,  but 
they  gave  him  an  excellent  training  for  the  great 
public  posts  which  he  was  to  hold  later. 

In  connection  with  his  work  as  clerk  of  the 
Assembly,  an  anecdote  is  told  which  shows  the 
extraordinary  activity  of  his  mind.  During  the 
sessions  there  were  many  hours  when  he  had  to  sit 
in  idleness,  listening  to  debates  in  which  he  could 
take  no  part ;  but  instead  of  dozing,  as  many  of 
his  predecessors  had  done,  he  occupied  his  time  by 
making  "Magical  Squares."  This  was  a  sort  of 
mathematical  pastime,  very  popular  in  his  day, 
and  involved  a  great  deal  of  thought  and  ingenuity. 
Franklin  became  exceedingly  skillful  at  it,  and  de- 
vised "Squares"  far  more  complicated  and  intri- 
cate than  any  that  had  been  made  before.  His 
most  wonderful  one  —  the  one  which  he  himself 
humorously  described  as  the  "most  magically 
magical  of  any  magical  square  ever  made  by  any 
magician"  —  he  planned  and  drew  up  in  a  single 
evening.  Here  is  one,  not  quite  so  "magical," 
perhaps,  but  sufficiently  complicated  to  show  the 


76 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 


cleverness  of  its  famous  maker.  Its  ingenuity 
will  be  very  evident  to  anyone  who  follows  the 
directions,  and  makes  the  many  additions  that 
are  suggested. 


52 

61 

4 

13 

20 

29 

36 

45 

14 

3 

62 

51 

46 

35 

3° 

19 

S3 

60 

5 

12 

21 

28 

37 

44 

ii 

6 

59 

54 

43 

38 

27 

22 

55 

58 

7 

10 

23 

26 

39 

42 

9 

8 

57 

56 

4i 

40 

25 

24 

50 

63 

2 

15 

18 

3i 

34 

47 

16 

i 

64 

49 

48 

33 

32 

17 

Its  properties  are  described  in  Franklin's  own 
words : 

i.  That  every  straight  row  (horizontal  or  vertical)  of 
8  numbers  added  together,  makes  260,  and  half  each  row 
half  of  260. 


FRANKLIN  THE   CITIZEN  77 

2.  That  the  bent  row  of  8  numbers,  ascending  and 
descending  diagonally,  viz.  from  16  ascending  to  10,  and 
from  23  descending  to  1 7 ;  and  every  one  of  its  parallel 
bent  rows  of  8  numbers  make  260.  —  Also  the  bent  row 
from  52  descending  to  54,  and  from  43  ascending  to  45; 
and  every  one  of  its  parallel  bent  rows  of  8  numbers  make 
260.  —  Also  the  bent  row  from  45  to  43,  descending  to  the 
left,  and  from  23  to  17,  descending  to  the  right,  and  every 
one  of  its  parallel  bent  rows  of  8  numbers,  make  260.  — 
Also  the  bent  row  from  52  to  54,  descending  to  the  right, 
and  from  10  to  16,  descending  to  the  left,  and  every  one  of 
its  parallel  bent  rows  of  8  numbers,  make  260.  —  Also  the 
parallel  bent  rows  next  to  the  above  mentioned,  which  are 
shortened  to  3  numbers  ascending,  and  3  descending,  &c., 
as  from  53  to  4  ascending,  and  from  29  to  44  descending, 
make,  with  the  2  corner  numbers,  260.  —  Also  the  2  num- 
bers 14,  61  ascending,  and  36,  19  descending,  with  the  lower 
4  numbers  situated  like  them,  viz.,  50,  i,  descending,  and 
32,  47,  ascending,  make  260.  —  And,  lastly,  the  4  corner 
numbers,  with  the  4  middle  numbers,  make  260. 

It  was  made  only  to  fill  in  a  few  idle  hours,  but 
it  proved  valuable  training  for  the  mind.  Indeed, 
Franklin  never  let  slip  an  opportunity  for  self- 
improvement.  Another  incident  of  this  period,  re- 
lated by  himself,  shows  how  he  made  the  game  of 
chess  serve  his  ends. 

"I  had  begun,"  he  says,  "in  1733  to  study  languages; 
I  soon  made  myself  so  much  a  master  of  the  French  as  to 
be  able  to  read  the  books  with  ease.  I  then  undertook  the 


78  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Italian.  An  acquaintance  who  was  also  learning  it,  us'd 
often  to  tempt  me  to  play  chess  with  him.  Finding  this 
took  up  too  much  of  the  time  I  had  to  spare  for  study,  I  at 
length  refused  to  play  any  more,  unless  on  this  condition, 
that  the  victor  in  every  game  should  have  a  right  to  impose 
a  task,  either  in  parts  of  the  grammar  to  be  got  by  heart,  or 
in  translations,  etc.,  which  tasks  the  vanquish'd  was  to  per- 
form upon  honour,  before  our  next  meeting.  As  we  play'd 
pretty  equally,  we  thus  beat  one  another  into  that  language." 

The  subject  of  education  always  interested  him. 
Almost  entirely  self-taught,  he  realized  the  benefit 
of  an  early  and  thorough  schooling.  In  those  days 
Philadelphia  had  no  school  of  any  importance  and 
no  college.  It  was  natural,  therefore,  that  he 
should  try  to  supply  the  want.  In  1743  he  drew 
up  a  scheme  for  establishing  an  academy,  and 
endeavored  to  interest  his  friends  and  the  public 
in  it.  But  the  time  was  badly  chosen.  England 
was  at  war  with  Spain  and  France.  Massachusetts 
and  some  of  the  other  New  England  colonies  had 
already  made  preparations  to  defend  themselves, 
and  were  even  fitting  out  expeditions  to  aid  their 
mother  country.  Everywhere  there  was  a  general 
feeling  of  alarm.  Franklin  soon  realized  the  use- 
lessness  of  trying  to  push  his  project  at  such  a  time, 
and,  laying  it  aside  temporarily,  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  a  more  pressing  matter  —  the  defense  of 
Pennsylvania. 


FRANKLIN  THE  CITIZEN  79 

Of  all  the  colonies,  Pennsylvania  was  the  only 
one  that  had  done  nothing  toward  arming  herself 
against  a  possible  invasion.  The  Quaker  doctrine 
against  war,  and  the  Quaker  influence  in  the  As- 
sembly, were  the  two  reasons  for  this.  Franklin 
tried  to  awaken  the  Assembly  to  a  sense  of  their 
danger.  Failing  in  that,  he  wrote  a  pamphlet 
called  "Plain  Truth,"  in  which  he  set  forth  the 
alarming  condition  of  affairs,  and  appealed  to  the 
people  for  help. 

The  pamphlet  made  a  tremendous  stir,  and 
shortly  after  its  appearance  he  was  asked  to  draw 
up  a  plan  for  a  volunteer  association  for  defense. 
He  did  so,  and  calling  a  public  meeting  of  the  citi- 
zens, aroused  them  to  such  enthusiasm  that  twelve 
hundred  at  once  enrolled  themselves  in  the  associ- 
ation. Within  a  few  days  almost  every  man  in 
the  province  who  was  not  a  Quaker  had  joined. 
Companies  were  formed,  arms  procured,  and  before 
long  Pennsylvania  had  an  army  of  more  than  ten 
thousand  men  to  put  in  the  field. 

Franklin  was  elected  colonel  of  the  Philadelphia 
regiment,  but  resigned  in  favor  of  a  Mr.  Lawrence, 
and  then  turned  his  energies  toward  raising  money 
for  building  a  fort  to  guard  the  Delaware  River. 
When  the  fort  was  finished,  it  was  discovered 
that  there  were  no  cannon  with  which  to  equip  it. 


8o  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Franklin  procured  some  old  guns  from  Boston  as  a 
temporary  defense,  and  had  a  shipment  of  cannon 
ordered  from  London;  but  fearing  that  they 
would  arrive  too  late,  he  and  several  of  his  friends 
were  sent  to  try  to  borrow  some  cannon  from 
Governor  Clinton  of  New  York. 

Eighteen  cannon  were  borrowed,  brought  to 
Philadelphia,  and  mounted  in  the  fort,  where  they 
remained  while  the  war  lasted.  Franklin  took 
his  turn  with  the  rest  of  the  militia  and,  as  a 
common  soldier,  helped  to  guard  the  fort  and  the 
city. 

Happily  for  Philadelphia,  no  invasion  took  place. 
Peace  was  declared  in  1748,  and  the  Pennsylvania 
militia  (Jisbanded.  Franklin's  share  in  the  defense 
of  the  province,  and  the  important  part  which  he 
had  taken  in  assuring  its  safety,  won  him  the  con- 
fidence and  trust  of  the  people ;  and  they  came  to 
regard  him  as  their  leader  and  adviser  in  times  of 
trouble. 

Freed  from  his  military  duties,  he  again  took  up 
the  project  of  founding  a  school,  and,  following  his 
custom,  wrote  a  pamphlet  setting  forth  his  scheme, 
which  he  called  "Proposals  relating  to  the  Educa- 
tion of  Youth  in  Pennsylvania."  A  copy  of  this 
pamphlet  was  sent  to  each  of  the  subscribers  of  the 
Gazette.  When  Franklin  thought  sufficient  time 


FRANKLIN  THE   CITIZEN  81 

had  elapsed  for  his  idea  to  bear  fruit,  he  opened  a 
subscription  for  the  building  of  his  school,  and 
through  his  influence  and  good  management 
twenty-five  thousand  dollars  were  collected.  With 
this  comfortable  sum  to  start  on,  the  Philadelphia 
Academy  was  opened  toward  the  end  of  1749. 

Pupils  applied  in  such  numbers  that  soon  it  was 
found  necessary  to  move  to  larger  quarters;  and 
a  building  which  had  been  erected  for  religious  and 
public  meetings  was  procured  and  altered  to  ac- 
commodate the  school.  Three  years  later  a  charity 
school  was  added,  where  a  hundred  free  pupils  were 
taught  reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic;  and  in 
1779,  just  thirty  years  after  it  had  been  founded, 
the  Academy  was  elevated  to  the  dignity  of  a  col- 
lege, and  became  the  present  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania. Franklin  lived  to  see  it  reach  its  final 
triumphant  stage,  and  remained  one  of  its  trustees 
until  a  year  or  so  before  his  death. 

Another  project  which  had  been  conceived  by 
his  friend  Dr.  Thomas  Bond,  and  which  he  aided 
greatly,  both  by  collecting  subscriptions  and  by 
persuading  the  Assembly  to  appropriate  money 
for  it,  was  the  establishment  of  a  hospital  in  Phila- 
delphia. The  idea  was  a  novel  one  in  America, 
and  Franklin  had  a  hard  time  in  convincing  the 
people  of  the  need  for  such  an  institution.  He 
G 


82  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

kept  at  them,  however,  with  his  usual  perseverance ; 
and  in  1755,  before  a  mighty  concourse  of  the 
townspeople,  the  corner  stone  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Hospital  was  laid. 

This  hospital,  grown  to  a  size  and  importance 
far  beyond  its  founders'  fondest  dreams,  still 
stands  upon  its  original  site  at  Eighth  and  Pine 
streets,  and,  like  most  of  the  projects  in  which 
Franklin  had  a  share,  is  the  best  known  and  best 
regulated  of  its  kind  in  Philadelphia. 

The  question  of  paving  the  streets  next  claimed 
his  attention.  Living  as  he  did  near  the  principal 
market,  he  had  good  cause  to  complain  of  the  mud 
and  dirt  which  collected  in  the  roadways,  making 
them  almost  impassable  in  rainy  weather.  Through 
his  efforts  the  street  leading  to  the  market  was 
finally  paved  with  stone.  It  proved  a  convenience 
to  every  one ;  and  when  the  people  saw  how  clean 
the  street  and  the  pavements  could  be  kept,  they 
insisted  that  all  the  streets  of  the  city  should  be 
paved  in  the  same  way. 

Franklin  was  asked  to  present  the  matter  to  the 
Assembly.  He  drafted  the  act,  and  though  he  had 
left  on  his  first  mission  to  England  before  the  law 
was  passed,  it  was  through  his  help  and  exertions 
that  the  people  obtained  this  much-needed  im- 
provement. 


FRANKLIN  THE  CITIZEN  83 

Meanwhile,  in  the  midst  of  all  these  activities, 
and  with  his  mind  filled  with  projects  for  the  wel- 
fare of  the  city,  Franklin  still  found  time  for  study 
at  home,  and  for  carrying  on  experiments  with 
air  and  electricity  which  were  to  make  his  name 
famous  throughout  the  world. 


CHAPTER  X 

FRANKLIN  THE  SCIENTIST 

FROM  his  earliest  years  Franklin  appears  to  have 
had  a  fondness  for  science  and  scientific  subjects. 
It  was  his  favorite  hobby,  and  he  was  always 
studying  some  phenomenon  of  nature,  reading 
up  the  latest  discoveries  in  natural  philosophy, 
or  making  his  own  experiments  to  prove  or  dis- 
prove some  new  theory.  What  first  turned  his 
mind  to  science  it  is  impossible  to  say.  Very 
probably  it  arose  from  his  eagerness  to  acquire 
knowledge.  This  was  almost  a  passion  with  him ; 
and  throughout  his  early  life  it  was  his  happy  lot 
to  be  thrown  constantly  in  the  company  of  learned 
men.  As  a  boy,  it  will  be  recalled,  he  associated  with 
the  "ingenious  men"  who  helped  his  brother 
publish  the  New  England  C  our  ant;  during  his  stay 
in  England  he  made  friends  with  Dr.  Mandeville, 
Sir  Hans  Sloane,  and  other  noted  scientists ;  and 
on  his  return  to  Philadelphia  he  had  formed  the 
Junto,  where  points  of  "Morals,  Politics,  or  Natural 
Philosophy"  were  discussed  by  the  members. 

84 


FRANKLIN    THE    SCIENTIST  85 

One  of  the  subjects  debated  by  the  club,  "How 
may  smoky  chimneys  be  best  cured?"  was  of 
great  interest  to  Franklin;  and  in  1742  he  not 
only  supplied  an  answer  to  the  question,  but  solved 
the  much  greater  problem  of  heating  a  room  com- 
fortably, by  inventing  the  "Pennsylvania  Fire- 
Place,"  or,  as  it  is  better  known,  "the  Franklin 
Stove."  The  principle  upon  which  this  stove 
worked  was  simple.  The  heat,  rising  from  an  open 
fireplace,  was  made  to  come  down  again  before 
going  out  through  the  chimney,  and  so  heated  the 
other  currents  of  air  in  the  room.  "I  suppose," 
says  Franklin,  "our  ancestors  never  thought  of 
warming  rooms  to  sit  in;  all  they  proposed  was 
to  have  a  place  to  make  a  fire  in,  by  which  they 
might  warm  themselves  when  cold."  In  describing 
the  virtues  of  his  invention,  he  adds  that  "your 
whole  room  is  equally  warm,  so  that  people  need 
not  crowd  so  close  round  the  fire,  but  may  sit  near 
the  window,  and  have  the  benefit  of  the  light  for 
reading,  writing,  needlework,  &c.  They  may  sit 
with  comfort  in  any  part  of  the  room,  which  is  a 
very  considerable  advantage  in  a  large  family." 

One  can  scarcely  realize  what  a  boon  this  in- 
vention of  Franklin's  was  to  the  people  of  his  day., 
There  were  no  furnaces,  no  stoves,  nothing  but 
open  fireplaces,  which  warmed  only  one's  face 


86  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

and  hands,  while  the  cold  air  nipped  at  one's  back 
and  heels.  Franklin  could  probably  have  made  a 
fortune  out  of  his  "Fire-Place."  Indeed,  the 
governor  of  the  province  was  so  pleased  with  it 
that  he  offered  to  issue  a  patent  on  it,  which  would 
have  given  its  inventor  the  sole  right  to  sell  it 
for  a  long  term  of  years.  Franklin,  however, 
refused  to  take  it,  on  the  principle,  as  he  generously 
says,  "that,  as  we  enjoy  great  advantages  from  the 
inventions  of  others,  we  should  be  glad  of  an 
opportunity  to  serve  others  by  any  inventions  of 
ours." 

An  ironmonger  in  London,  it  appears,  had  no 
such  generous  ideas.  Adding  a  few  small  improve- 
ments, he  secured  a  patent  on  the  stove,  and  pass- 
ing it  off  as  his  own,  made  a  considerable  sum  of 
money  from  the  sale  of  it  in  England.  It  is 
characteristic  of  Franklin  that  he  never  took  any 
action  against  the  man,  nor  contested  his  right  to 
the  patent. 

In  the  winter  of  1746-47  Franklin  began  the  study 
of  electricity.  A  year  or  two  before,  great  interest 
in  this  subject  had  been  roused  by  the  perfection 
of  the  Leyden  jar,  and  lecturers  went  about  the 
country  displaying  the  apparatus,  and  giving  their 
half-terrified,  half-fascinated  audiences  electrical 
shocks.  Franklin  met  one  of  these  men  during 


FRANKLIN    THE    SCIENTIST  87 

a  visit  to  Boston  and  was  extremely  interested  in 
the  experiments  performed.  On  his  return  to 
Philadelphia  he  found  that  Peter  Collinson,  a 
member  of  the  Royal  Society  in  England,  and  the 
man  who  purchased  the  books  for  the  Philadelphia 
Library,  had  sent,  with  his  last  shipment  of  books, 
one  of  the  newly  devised  glass  tubes  for  the  genera- 
tion of  electricity.  These  tubes  were  about  two 
and  a  half  feet  long  and  as  thick  as  a  man  could 
conveniently  hold  hi  his  hand.  The  electricity  was 
generated  by  rubbing  the  tube  briskly  with  a  piece 
of  cloth,  and  then  touching  it  to  the  Leyden  jar 
or  other  object  to  be  charged.  This  was  the  only 
means  then  known  for  manufacturing  electricity. 
Franklin  immediately  became  fascinated  with 
it,  and,  procuring  other  tubes  from  the  glassworks, 
soon  had  all  his  acquaintances  rubbing  them.  To 
most  of  them  it  was  merely  a  new  toy,  but  to  Frank- 
lin and  to  three  of  his  close  friends,  Ebenezer 
Kinnersley,  Thomas  Hopkinson,  and  Philip  Syng, 
electricity  became  the  object  of  study  and  investi- 
gation for  many  years.  They  worked  both  sepa- 
rately and  together,  testing  experiments  already 
known  and  trying  many  new  ones  of  their  own 
invention.  They  set  fire  to  rum  and  brandy  with 
the  electric  spark,  lighted  candles  by  it,  performed 
amusing  tricks  with  a  spider  made  of  burnt  cork, 


88 

and  finally,  after  many  attempts,  produced  what 
was  probably  the  first  electrical  battery.  It  was 
composed  of  eleven  panes  of  window  glass  inclosed 
in  thin  leaden  plates  and  supported  by  a  silken 
cord,  with  wires  and  chains  connecting  them.  The 
glass  was  soon  found  to  be  too  cumbersome,  and 
they  replaced  it  by  Ley  den  jars,  which  were  easier 
to  handle  and  capable  of  storing  more  power.  It 
was  during  these  early  stages  of  their  experiments 
that  Philip  Syng  contrived  a  machine  for  generating 
electricity.  This  did  away  with  the  slow  and  tire- 
some method  of  rubbing  the  tubes  with  cloths  and 
was  of  immense  benefit  to  the  four  investigators. 
Franklin  far  outshone  them  all,  both  in  the  depth 
of  his  observations  and  in  the  boldness  of  his 
experiments.  It  was  a  quality  of  his  mind  to 
improve  on  everything  that  he  took  up ;  and  dur- 
ing the  first  winter  of  his  study  in  this  new  vein 
he  threw  aside  the  old  idea  as  to  the  nature  of 
electricity,  and  proved  that  it  was  collected,  and 
not  created,  by  friction ;  that  the  power  itself 
was  "really  an  element  diffused  among,  and  at- 
tracted by,  other  matter,  particularly  by  water 
and  metals."  From  these  assertions  he  arrived 
at  the  conclusion  that  electricity  remains  in  a 
positive  and  negative,  or,  as  he  himself  called  it, 
a  plus  and  a  minus  state.  This  explained  why 


FRANKLIN    THE    SCIENTIST  89 

the  electric  spark  leaped  from  the  charged,  or 
positive,  object  to  the  uncharged,  or  negative,  one ; 
and  accounted  for  many  other  electrical  phenomena 
until  then  not  understood.  It  is  the  accepted 
theory  to-day,  and  its  discovery  marked  the  begin- 
ning of  modern  knowledge  of  electricity.  We  have 
long  since  ceased  to  treat  the  mysterious  fluid  as 
a  curiosity,  for  it  is  now  recognized  as  a  powerful 
and  useful  force. 

In  the  autumn  of  1748  Franklin  formed  a  part- 
nership with  his  foreman,  David  Hall,  who  took 
over  the  running  of  the  printing-shop.  The  ar- 
rangement promised  to  give  Franklin  all  the  time 
he  wished  to  pursue  his  electrical  studies.  This, 
however,  was  not  to  be  the  case,  for  "the  public," 
he  writes,  "now  considering  me  as  a  man  of  lei- 
sure, laid  hold  of  me  for  their  purposes ; "  and  with- 
in a  very  few  months  he  was  appointed  a  justice 
of  the  peace,  chosen  one  of  the  City  Council,  and 
finally  elected  a  member  of  the  Assembly.  He  ac- 
cepted all  three  offices,  but  soon  resigned  from  that 
of  justice  of  the  peace,  on  the  plea  that  he  had  not 
sufficient  knowledge  of  the  law.  The  other  posts 
he  continued  to  hold,  and  moving  to  the  southeast 
corner  of  Second  and  Race  streets,  then  a  "re- 
tired" part  of  the  town,  devoted  his  spare  hours 
to  his  electrical  studies. 


90  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

For  the  time  being  he  gave  up  his  experiments 
with  electrical  machines,  and  set  to  work  to  discover 
what  place,  if  any,  electricity  had  in  nature. 
Other  men  had  suggested  that  lightning  and  elec- 
tricity were  the  same  thing,  but  no  one  had  yet 
proved  it.  To  do  this  became  Franklin's  object, 
and  during  the  winter  of  1 748-49  and  all  of  the  fol- 
lowing summer  he  was  busily  engaged  making 
observations  and  drawing  inferences  from  them. 
An  extract  from  his  notes  of  that  period  shows 
with  what  patience  and  acuteness  he  gathered 
his  facts,  and  with  what  wonderful  keenness  and 
intelligence  he  arrived  at  his  deductions.  "Elec- 
trical fluid,"  the  notes  read,  "agrees  with  lightning 
in  these  particulars:  i.  Giving  light.  2.  Color 
of  the  light.  3.  Crooked  direction.  4.  Swift  mo- 
tion. 5.  Being  conducted  by  metals.  6.  Crack 
or  noise  in  exploding.  7.  Subsisting  in  water  or 
ice.  8.  Rending  bodies  it  passes  through.  9.  De- 
stroying animals.  10.  Melting  metals,  n.  Firing 
inflammable  substances.  12.  Sulphurous  smell. 
The  electric  fluid  is  attracted  by_  points.  We  do 
not  know  whether  this  property  is  in  lightning. 
But  since  they  agree  in  all  the  particulars  wherein 
we  can  already  compare  them,  is  it  not  probable 
they  agree  likewise  in  this?" 

The  substance  of  these  notes  is  contained  in  a 


FRANKLIN    THE    SCIENTIST  91 

series  of  observations  which  he  drew  up  early  in 
1749,  and  which  he  enlarged  later  in  what  is  prob- 
ably the  most  celebrated  of  all  his  articles  on  elec- 
tricity, called  "Opinions  and  Conjectures  concern- 
ing the  Properties  and  Effects  of  the  Electrical 
Matter,  and  the  means  of  preserving  Buildings, 
Ships,  &c.,  from  Lightning,  arising  from  Experi- 
ments and  Observations  made  at  Philadelphia, 

I749-" 

In  this  paper  he  put  forth  two  suggestions  which 
made  his  name  famous  both  in  Europe  and  America. 
They  are  contained  in  two  brief  paragraphs.  After 
describing  an  experiment  by  which  a  pointed  wire 
was  made  to  act  as  a  conductor  of  electricity,  he 
continues :  "May  not  the  knowledge  of  this  power 
of  points  be  of  use  to  mankind,  in  preserving  houses, 
churches,  ships,  &c.,  from  the  stroke  of  lightning, 
by  directing  us  to  fix,  on  the  highest  part  of  those 
edifices,  upright  rods  of  iron  made  sharp  as  a  needle, 
and  gilt  to  prevent  rusting,  and  from  the  foot  of 
those  rods  a  wire  down  the  outside  of  the  building 
into  the  ground,  or  down  round  one  of  the  shrouds 
of  a  ship,  and  down  her  side  till  it  reaches  the  water  ? 
Would  not  these  pointed  rods  probably  draw  the 
electrical  fire  silently  out  of  a  cloud  before  it  came 
nigh  enough  to  strike,  and  thereby  secure  us  from 
that  most  sudden  and  terrible  mischief?" 


92  BENJAMIN   FRANKLIN 

Here,  in  two  sentences,  he  sets  forth  the  idea 
which  he  afterward  developed  in  his  world-re- 
nowned invention  of  the  lightning-rod ;  but  when 
he  wrote  it  was  still  only  an  idea  and  had  not  been 
put  to  the  test.  Indeed,  he  had  not  yet  even  suc- 
ceeded in  proving  scientifically  the  identity  of 
lightning  with  electricity;  but  he  was  absolutely 
convinced  of  it  himself ;  and  in  his  second  sugges- 
tion he  describes  the  way  in  which  it  could  be 
established  beyond  doubt.  "To  determine  the 
question,  whether  the  clouds  that  contain  lightning 
are  electrified  or  not,"  he  says,  "I  would  propose  an 
experiment  to  be  tried  where  it  may  be  done 
conveniently.  On  the  top  of  some  high  tower  or 
steeple,  place  a  kind  of  sentry-box  .  .  .  big 
enough  to  contain  a  man  and  an  electrical  stand. 
From  the  middle  of  the  stand  let  an  iron  rod  rise 
and  pass  bending  out  of  the  door,  and  then  upright 
twenty  or  thirty  feet,  pointed  very  sharp  at  the 
end.  If  the  electrical  stand  be  kept  clean  and  dry, 
a  man  standing  on  it,  when  such  clouds  are  passing 
low,  might  be  electrified  and  afford  sparks,  the  rod 
drawing  fire  to  him  from  a  cloud.  If  any  danger 
to  the  man  should  be  apprehended  (though  I  think 
there  would  be  none),  let  him  stand  on  the  floor  of 
his  box,  and  now  and  then  bring  near  to  the  rod 
the  loop  of  a  wire  that  has  one  end  fastened  to  the 


FRANKLIN    THE    SCIENTIST  93 

leads,  he  holding  it  by  a  wax  handle;  so  that 
sparks,  if  the  rod  is  electrified,  will  strike  from  the 
rod  to  the  wire  and  not  affect  him." 

Unfortunately,  there  was  no  steeple  in  Philadel- 
phia where  Franklin  could  try  this  experiment 
himself;  and  in  July,  1750,  he  sent  the  pamphlet 
containing  the  suggestions,  together  with  a  lot  of 
other  data  on  electricity,  to  his  friend  Peter  Col- 
linson  in  London.  Collinson,  realizing  the  impor- 
tance of  the  papers,  had  them  printed  under  the 
name  of  "New  Experiments  and  Observations  in 
Electricity,  made  at  Philadelphia,  in  America." 
He  presented  a  copy  to  the  Royal  Society,  where 
it  was  read  and  caused  a  great  stir. 

By  some  fortunate  chance  a  copy  fell  into  the 
hands  of  a  well-known  French  scientist,  the  Count 
de  Buffon.  He  immediately  had  it  translated  into 
French,  and  during  the  summer  of  1751  had  it 
published  in  Paris.  It  had  an  enormous  sale. 
Scientists  took  up  Franklin's  theories  and  tried 
to  prove  or  disprove  them  as  the  case  might  be. 
His  name  became  familiar  to  every  learned  man  in 
Europe.  King  Louis  XV  had  some  of  the  most 
noted  of  the  experiments  performed  in  his  presence, 
and  ordered  a  letter  to  be  written  to  the  Royal 
Society,  expressing  his  admiration  of  Franklin's 
queries.  But  even  greater  fame  was  awaiting 


94  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Franklin.  In  the  spring  of  1752  the  Count  de 
Buffon  and  two  of  his  fellow-scientists  caused  the 
apparatus  suggested  by  the  Philadelphian  to  be 
erected  on  a  hill  in  the  little  town  of  Marly  in 
France;  and  here  on  May  10,  in  the  midst  of  a 
thunderstorm,  they  succeeded  in  drawing  elec- 
tricity from  the  clouds.  Franklin's  idea  that 
electricity  and  lightning  were  the  same  thing  was 
proved  beyond  the  shadow  of  a  doubt. 

The  Royal  Society,  on  learning  of  the  Count  de 
Buffon's  complete  success,  unanimously  elected 
Franklin  a  member  of  their  body  and  voted  him  a 
medal. 

Meanwhile,  quite  unconscious  of  the  honors 
which  were  being  heaped  on  him  abroad,  Franklin 
was  quietly  pursuing  his  studies  in  Philadelphia; 
and  while  the  Count  de  Buffon  was  carrying  on  his 
experiments  at  Marly,  Franklin  conceived  the  idea 
of  attempting  similar  experiments  by  means  of  a 
kite. 

The  kite  was  made  of  silk  with  a  sharp-pointed 
wire  fixed  to  the  upright  stick  of  the  framework. 
To  the  end  of  the  cord  which  held  the  kite  a  silk 
ribbon  was  tied,  and  where  the  cord  and  the  ribbon 
joined  a  metal  key  was  fastened.  The  person  fly- 
ing the  kite  stood  under  a  shelter  so  that  the  silk 
ribbon  would  not  get  wet.  This  he  held  in  his 


FRANKLIN    THE    SCIENTIST  95 

hand,  and  as  soon  as  the  thunder  clouds  passed 
over  the  kite  he  would  be  able  to  draw  sparks  from 
the  key. 

It  was  June  before  Franklin  had  an  opportunity 
to  test  his  kite.  The  probable  place  where  the 
experiment  was  made  was  a  desolate  bit  of  common 
near  what  is  now  Eighth  and  Race  streets.  Fear- 
ing that  he  might  be  laughed  at,  Franklin  told  no 
one  what  he  was  going  to  do,  and  on  the  approach 
of  a  thunderstorm  he  stole  away  from  his  house 
with  only  his  son  William  to  help  him.  They 
managed,  with  some  difficulty,  to  get  the  kite  up, 
and  then  stood  in  the  open  door  of  an  old  ruined 
cowshed  to  see  what  would  happen. 

For  a  time  nothing  happened.  The  heavy  clouds 
passed  over  the  kite,  but  no  sign  of  a  spark  appeared 
from  the  key.  Franklin  began  to  think  that  his 
theory  was  wrong,  and  that  all  his  work  for  the 
past  few  years  was  wasted.  He  had  given  up  hope, 
and  was  almost  ready  to  go  home,  when  suddenly 
he  saw  the  fibers  of  the  hempen  cord  which  held 
the  kite  stiffen  and  rise,  as  a  person's  hair  is  said 
to  rise  with  fright.  Trembling  with  excitement 
he  touched  his  knuckle  to  the  key.  There  was  a 
crack,  a  flash,  and  he  felt  the  unmistakable  thrill 
of  electricity  run  through  him !  Almost  afraid  to 
believe  in  his  success,  he  applied  the  key  to  a  Leyden 


96  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

jar  which  he  had  brought  with  him ;  and  when  he 
thought  it  was  charged,  he  touched  it  with  his  fingers. 
The  shock  he  received  dispelled  his  last  doubts ! 

The  next  ship  from  Europe  brought  news  of  the 
Count  de  Buffon's  experiments  at  Marly,  and 
Franklin  suddenly  found  himself  famous  both  at 
home  and  abroad. 

He  received  his  new  honors  with  great  modesty. 
It  was  not  until  October  —  four  months  after  his 
memorable  discovery  —  that  he  sent  to  Collinson 
any  account  of  his  tests  with  the  kite,  and  even 
then  he  described  the  incident  as  a  possible  exper- 
iment, and  without  suggesting  in  any  way  that  he 
had  attempted  it  himself. 

In  the  meanwhile,  however,  he  had  made  his 
discovery  serve  a  useful  purpose,  and  had  turned 
the  first  of  his  famous  "suggestions"  into  a  reality 
by  inventing  the  lightning-rod.  The  use  of  it 
spread  rapidly ;  but  there  were  those  who  believed 
it  a  dangerous  thing,  and  asserted  that  the  accumu- 
lation of  electricity  in  the  earth  was  the  direct 
cause  of  the  earthquake  which  occurred  in  1755. 
Even  as  late  as  1770  a  clergyman  in  Boston  stated 
solemnly  that  "as  lightning  is  one  of  the  means  of 
punishing  the  sins  of  mankind,  and  of  warning 
them  from  the  commission  of  sin,  it  is  impious  to 
prevent  its  full  execution." 


FRANKLIN    THE    SCIENTIST  97 

In  England  there  was  an  amusing  discussion  as 
to  whether  the  pointed  ends  favored  by  Franklin,  or 
blunt  ends,  should  be  used.  George  III  favored 
blunt  ends,  and  ordered  them  to  be  substituted  for 
the  pointed  ends  then  on  Kew  Palace.  The  king's 
decision  was  ridiculed  by  some  clever  wit  in  the 
following  stanza : 

"While  you,  great  George,  for  safety  hunt, 
And  sharp  conductors  change  for  blunt, 

The  nation's  out  of  joint. 
Franklin  a  wiser  course  pursues, 
And  all  your  thunder  fearless  views, 

By  keeping  to  the  point." 

Franklin's  most  important  discoveries  are  con- 
nected with  electricity ;  but  every  branch  of  nat- 
ural science  was  of  interest  to  him,  and  he  studied 
and  wrote  about  light,  heat,  fire,  air,  the  sun  spots, 
the  stars,  the  tides,  the  wind,  waterspouts,  rain- 
fall, ventilation,  sound,  and  a  dozen  other  subjects. 

He  was  one  of  the  foremost  scientists  of  his  day, 
and  might  have  been  the  greatest  of  all  time  if 
politics  and  the  duties  of  public  life  had  not  claimed 
him  and  turned  his  energies  into  other  channels. 


CHAPTER  XI 

FRANKLIN  THE  SOLDIER 

FRANKLIN  took  his  seat  in  the  Pennsylvania 
Assembly  at  a  time  when  ill  feeling  between  that 
body  and  the  proprietaries  of  the  province  was 
reaching  a  crisis.  These  proprietaries,  as  they  were 
called,  were  Thomas  and  Richard  Penn,  sons  of 
William  Penn,  founder  of  the  colony.  Upon  their 
father's  death  and  that  of  their  brother  John,  they 
had  succeeded  to  huge  estates  in  Pennsylvania; 
and,  like  William  Penn,  were  practically  rulers  of 
the  colony.  Both  lived  in  England,  but  had  a 
governor  to  represent  them  in  Pennsylvania,  and 
no  act  of  the  Assembly  could  be  made  a  law  with- 
out the  governor's  assent.  This  led  to  endless 
disputes,  as  the  governor  could  do  nothing  without 
the  Penns'  permission ;  and  the  two  proprietaries 
were  more  concerned  in  preserving  their  own  inter- 
ests than  in  advancing  those  of  the  province. 

Franklin  sided  very  strongly  with  the  people, 
and  the  services  which  he  rendered  them  in  the 
Assembly  were  numerous  and  important.  No 

98 


FRANKLIN  THE  SOLDIER  99 

record  of  public  debates  was  ever  kept,  but  if  it 
had  been,  his  share  in  them  would  have  been  small ; 
for,  as  he  himself  declares,  "I  was  a  bad  speaker; 
never  eloquent,  subject  to  much  hesitation  in  the 
choice  of  words,  hardly  correct  in  language,  and 
yet  I  generally  carried  my  point." 

He  depended  upon  intelligence  and  force  of 
argument,  where  other  men  depended  upon  or- 
atory; and  his  advice  and  suggestions  always 
commanded  attention  and  respect. 

As  the  value  of  his  services  became  more  and 
more  apparent,  he  was  called  upon  to  assist  the 
colony  in  outside  affairs. 

In  1752  he  was  appointed  a  member  of  a  com- 
mission to  meet  the  Indians  and  form  a  new  treaty 
with  them-.  The  meeting  took  place  at  Carlisle, 
Pennsylvania;  and  through  Franklin's  adroitness 
and  tact  the  treaty  was  made  to  the  satisfaction 
of  both  the  Indians  and  the  colonists. 

A  year  later  the  postmaster-general  of  America 
died,  and  Franklin  and  a  man  named  William 
Hunter  were  appointed  by  the  government  in 
England  to  fill  his  place.  In  those  days  the  postal 
system  in  the  colonies  was  very  primitive.  There 
were  no  mail  coaches,  the  mail  being  carried  en- 
tirely on  horseback.  The  post  roads  along  which 
the  carriers  traveled  were  often  mere  bridle  paths 


ioo  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

cut  through  the  forests.  Only  the  larger  cities 
lying  along  the  coast  between  Boston  and  Charles- 
ton, South  Carolina,  had  post  offices,  and  letters 
addressed  to  persons  living  inland  were  taken  to 
their  destinations  by  any  chance  travelers  who  hap- 
pened along.  There  was  one  mail  a  week  between 
New  York  and  Philadelphia  in  summer,  and  one 
every  two  weeks  during  the  winter ;  while  a  person 
writing  from  Philadelphia  to  Boston  had  to  wait  a 
month  and  a  half  for  a  reply. 

With  his  usual  energy  Franklin  immediately  set 
about  improving  the  entire  system.  He  increased 
the  number  of  mails  between  important  cities; 
caused  the  post  roads  to  be  widened  and  straight- 
ened, reduced  the  rates  of  postage,  charged  for 
the  carrying  of  newspapers,  which  until  then  had 
been  delivered  free,  and  generally  put  the  whole 
service  upon  a  more  modern  footing.  Under  his 
management  the  post  office  not  only  paid  expenses, 
but,  for  the  first  time,  yielded  the  government  a 
small  revenue. 

While  he  was  still  perfecting  his  mail  system, 
war  with  the  French  was  again  threatened;  and 
he  was  sent  to  represent  Pennsylvania  at  a  confer- 
ence of  the  colonies  held  in  the  old  Dutch  town  of 
Albany,  in  New  York.  The  object  of  this  confer- 
ence was  to  form  some  plan  for  mutual  defense 


FRANKLIN  THE   SOLDIER  101 

against  the  French.  On  the  trip  to  Albany  Frank- 
lin drew  up  a  scheme  for  the  union  of  the  colonies, 
which  he  presented  to  the  meeting,  and  which  was 
generally  approved.  The  government  in  England, 
however,  thought  it  gave  the  colonies  too  much 
power  and  made  them  too  independent,  so  it  came 
to  nothing.  Curiously  enough,  it  was  very  similar 
to  the  plan  suggested  for  the  union  of  the  states 
after  the  Revolution,  and  the  one  which  was  finally 
adopted. 

The  conference  in  Albany  broke  up  without 
accomplishing  anything,  and  Franklin  returned 
to  Philadelphia.  This  was  in  the  summer  of  1754. 
In  the  spring  of  the  following  year  the  quarrel  be- 
tween the  Assembly  and  the  proprietaries  broke 
out  afresh  over  the  question  of  taxation.  The 
proprietaries  were  willing  that  the  colonists  should 
pass  laws  taxing  themselves  as  much  as  they  chose, 
but  refused  to  allow  the  governor  to  give  his  con- 
sent to  any  law  which  made  the  Penns'  own  large 
estates  subject  to  taxation.  The  Assembly,  on 
their  side,  refused  to  pass  any  law  which  exempted 
the  proprietaries'  lands  from  being  taxed  with  the 
rest.  It  was  at  a  time  when  war  was  about  to  be 
declared  and  money  was  badly  needed,  but  neither 
side  would  give  ground,  and  the  quarrel  grew  more 
and  more  bitter. 


102  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

In  the  midst  of  the  dispute  the  French  and 
Indian  War  broke  out,  and  word  was  received  that 
General  Braddock,  who  was  then  in  Maryland 
preparing  to  march  on  the  enemy,  had  heard  that 
Pennsylvania  had  refused  to  supply  funds  for  the 
army,  and  was  much  enraged  at  this  lack  of  loyalty. 
Franklin  was  immediately  sent  to  Braddock's 
camp  to  explain  the  situation  to  him.  Joining 
the  governor  of  New  York  and  the  governor  of 
Massachusetts,  who  had  been  summoned  to  confer 
with  the  general,  Franklin  set  out  on  horseback. 
The  three  proceeded  south  as  quickly  as  they  could, 
sleeping  each  night  at  some  stately  and  well-kept 
mansion  on  their  road,  and  riding  by  day  through 
woods  and  fields  in  the  balmy  April  weather. 

When  they  reached  the  camp  Franklin's  first 
mission  was  to  remove  from  Braddock's  mind  the 
doubts  which  he  had  as  to  Pennsylvania's  loyalty. 
This  he  accomplished  with  such  success  that  the 
general  asked  his  advice  about  the  country  and  its 
inhabitants,  and  even  persuaded  him  to  assist  in 
preparing  the  army  for  its  long  march.  The  thing 
which  hampered  Braddock  most  was  lack  of  trans- 
portation. In  both  Maryland  and  Virginia  there 
was  a  scarcity  of  wagons;  after  scouring  the 
countryside,  he  had  managed  to  find  only  twenty- 
five.  Franklin  undertook  to  supply  his  wants 


FRANKLIN  THE  SOLDIER  103 

from  Pennsylvania;  and  in  twenty  days  he  had 
one  hundred  and  fifty  wagons,  two  hundred  and 
fifty-nine  pack  horses,  and  a  large  quantity  of  hay 
and  oats  at  the  general's  disposal.  Braddock 
thanked  him  again  and  again,  commended  him 
for  what  he  had  done,  and  later  mentioned  him 
with  warm  admiration  in  his  dispatches  home. 

It  was  during  his  visit  to  Braddock's  camp  that 
Franklin  first  met  a  young  man  who  was  then  only 
an  officer  on  the  general's  staff,  but  who  was  soon 
to  become  one  of  the  most  famous  men  of  this 
country.  That  man  was  George  Washington. 

Braddock's  troops  set  out  on  their  march 
against  the  French,  and  Franklin  journeyed  back 
to  Philadelphia.  No  one  doubted  the  success  of 
the  expedition.  They  were  trained  troops,  there- 
fore they  could  not  be  beaten  by  Indians.  In 
Philadelphia  preparations  were  made  to  celebrate 
the  coming  victory,  and  a  subscription  was  begun 
for  a  display  of  fireworks.  When,  therefore,  the 
news  of  Braddock's  disastrous  defeat  was  brought 
to  the  city,  it  was  received  in  stunned  silence. 
No  one  could  believe  it  possible ;  but  the  remnant 
of  Braddock's  troops,  broken  and  panic-stricken, 
soon  arrived  in  the  city  and  confirmed  the  tidings. 
The  English  had  been  completely  routed,  and 
Pennsylvania  lay  at  the  mercy  of  the  enemy. 


104  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

This  was  in  July.  During  August,  September, 
and  October  the  Assembly  and  the  governor  con- 
tinued their  wrangling  over  the  question  of  taxing 
the  proprietaries'  estates,  and  no  law  was  passed 
to  raise  money  for  the  defense  of  the  colony. 

In  September  the  French  and  their  Indian 
allies  began  to  advance  into  the  frontier  counties 
of  the  province ;  and  by  the  first  of  November 
tales  of  war  and  the  destruction  of  villages  reached 
the  city  almost  every  day.  Meanwhile,  through 
the  efforts  of  Franklin,  the  facts  of  the  quarrel 
between  the  governor  and  the  Assembly  had  be- 
come known  in  England;  and  the  Penns,  fearing 
that  the  king  might  be  persuaded  to  take  their 
estates  away  from  them,  ordered  the  governor 
to  add  five  thousand  pounds  —  twenty-five  thou- 
sand dollars  —  to  any  amount  which  the  Assembly 
might  vote  for  purposes  of  defense.  Franklin 
advised  the  Assembly  to  accept  the  money,  and 
pass  the  necessary  laws  for  raising  by  taxation  ad- 
ditional funds  for  defense.  This  the  Assembly 
did,  voting  the  large  sum  of  sixty  thousand  pounds 
—  three  hundred  thousand  dollars  —  and  exempt- 
ing, under  protest,  the  lands  belonging  to  the 
Penns. 

Franklin  was  made  one  of  the  war  commissioners, 
and  immediately  began  to  buy  arms  and  provi- 


FRANKLIN  THE  SOLDIER  105 

sions,  recruit  men,  and  make  preparations  for 
sending  them  to  the  front.  Late  in  November 
word  came  that  the  Moravian  village  of  Guaden- 
hutten  had  been  burned  by  the  Indians  and  its 
people  massacred.  This  was  in  Northampton 
County,  not  more  than  seventy  miles  from  Phila- 
delphia. Now  thoroughly  alarmed  for  the  safety 
of  the  city,  the  governor  asked  Franklin  to  lead 
a  party  to  the  rescue  of  the  outlying  settlements. 
Franklin  consented,  and  toward  the  middle  of 
December  set  out  at  the  head  of  about  five  hundred 
men. 

The  march  through  the  rough  and  thinly  popu- 
lated country  was  difficult  in  the  extreme.  The 
weather  was  bad,  the  roads  little  more  than  forest 
tracks  choked  with  mud;  supplies  were  scarce 
and  sometimes  impossible  to  obtain.  It  took  the 
little  army  almost  a  month  to  reach  Bethlehem, 
the  chief  town  of  the  county,  and  distant  from 
Philadelphia  only  fifty  miles.  Here  Franklin  re- 
mained a  few  days,  reassuring  the  people,  and 
sending  out  detachments  into  the  neighboring 
country  to  reconnoiter  and  erect  stockades. 

To  what  dangers  they  were  exposed  is  shown  by 
an  incident  which  took  place  while  they  were 
marching  from  Bethlehem  to  Guadenhutten.  Just 
before  they  left  Bethlehem  eleven  farmers,  who  had 


io6  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

been  driven  from  their  homes  by  the  Indians,  came 
to  Franklin  and  asked  for  firearms.  They  wished 
to  return  to  their  farms  and  rescue  their  cattle. 
Franklin  gave  each  one  a  gun  and  ammunition, 
and  the  men  departed.  Shortly  after  they  had 
started  it  began  to  rain.  In  the  midst  of  the 
storm  they  met  a  party  of  Indians.  The  farmers 
tried  to  fire  at  them,  but  their  guns  were  soaked 
and  would  not  go  off.  The  Indians,  closing  in  on 
them,  killed  all  but  one,  who  managed  to  escape. 
Warned  by  their  fate,  Franklin  advanced  toward 
Guadenhutten  with  great  caution.  His  scouts, 
ranging  the  woods,  found  traces  of  the  Indians  on 
every  side;  but  the  little  army  was  allowed  to 
proceed  without  interruption,  and  arrived  at  the 
ruined  village  in  safety.  Here  a  stockade  was 
marked  out  and  work  on  it  immediately  begun. 
Within  five  days  one  log  fort  was  completed,  and 
before  very  long  two  others  were  finished  in  the 
country  near  by. 

Secured  against  surprise,  Franklin  sent  out  small 
parties  to  scour  the  country.  They  met  no  In- 
dians, but  found  many  places  on  the  surrounding 
hills  where  they  had  evidently  posted  spies  to 
watch  the  army's  proceedings. 

Franklin  made  his  men  as  comfortable  as  he 
could  in  their  rough  quarters,  and  settled  down  to 


FRANKLIN  THE  SOLDIER  107 

spend  the  winter  in  the  wilderness.  Toward  the 
end  of  January,  however,  word  arrived  from  Phila- 
delphia that  the  governor  was  on  the  point  of  sum- 
moning the  Assembly,  and  that  the  old  quarrel 
was  likely  to  be  renewed.  Both  Franklin's  friends 
and  the  governor  were  anxious  for  him  to  return. 
He  left  the  army  in  charge  of  Colonel  Clapham,  a 
soldier  of  experience,  and,  journeying  back  to 
Philadelphia  by  easy  stages,  reached  that  city 
about  the  middle  of  February,  1756,  after  two 
months'  service  in  the  field. 

He  found  the  Assembly  and  the  governor  once 
more  at  swords'  points.  It  had  been  discovered 
that  the  five  thousand  pounds  given  by  the  pro- 
prietaries was  not  an  outright  gift,  but  was  to  be 
collected  as  best  it  might  be  from  those  of  the 
Penns'  tenants  who  were  behind  in  their  rent. 
This  enraged  the  Assembly,  and  the  old  dispute 
about  taxing  the  Penns'  estates  was  revived  with 
great  bitterness.  The  remainder  of  the  winter 
was  spent  in  useless  quarreling;  and,  as  on  pre- 
vious occasions,  the  Assembly  adjourned  without 
accomplishing  anything.  Worn  out  by  ceaseless 
wrangling,  the  governor,  Robert  Morris,  sent  his 
resignation  to  England,  and  Captain  William 
Denny  was  appointed  by  the  Penns  to  fill  his  place. 
He  arrived  in  Philadelphia  about  the  middle  of 


io8  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

August,  and  was  welcomed  by  the  people,  who 
looked  upon  him  as  their  deliverer.  But  they  were 
soon  undeceived.  He  was  as  bound  by  his  instruc- 
tions from  the  Penns  as  Governor  Morris  had 
been.  He  and  the  Assembly  could  not  agree  on 
anything. 

By  December  the  people  had  grown  desperate. 
There  was  no  money  in  the  treasury ;  the  Indians 
were  again  menacing  the  outlying  districts;  and 
the  frontier  was  unprotected.  Realizing  that  some- 
thing must  be  done  at  once,  the  Assembly  passed 
an  act  exempting  as  before  the  Penns'  estates  from 
taxation,  but  taxing  beer  and  liquors  in  their  place. 
They  had  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  governor 
would  consent  to  this  law,  and  sent  it  to  him  for 
his  signature.  But  to  their  surprise  and  anger  the 
governor  refused  to  sign.  A  committee  from  the 
Assembly  went  to  see  him.  He  told  them  that 
his  instructions  forbade  him  to  approve  the  law 
as  it  stood.  There  would  have  to  be  many  changes 
made  in  it.  The  committee  tried  to  persuade  him, 
but  without  success;  and  he  finally  sent  the  act 
back  to  the  Assembly  with  a  statement  that  he 
would  not  allow  it  to  pass;  and,  as  there  was  no 
one  to  judge  between  himself  and  the  Assembly, 
he  would  immediately  send  the  reasons  for  his 
action  to  the  king. 


FRANKLIN    THE    SOLDIER  109 

The  Assembly  received  his  message  in  blank 
amazement.  They  were  afraid  that  the  governor's 
attitude  would  leave  them  worse  off  than  they 
were  before.  Several  days  were  spent  in  discussing 
the  new  situation,  and  finally  they  decided  to 
follow  the  governor's  example  and  appeal  to  the 
king.  Franklin  and  an  old  gentleman  named 
Isaac  Norris  were  appointed  to  go  to  England  and 
present  their  grievances.  Norris  pleaded  his 
advanced  age ;  but  Franklin  accepted  the  mission, 
and  toward  the  end  of  June,  1757,  after  innumerable 
delays,  he  and  his  son  William,  who  had  been 
commissioned  to  accompany  him,  set  out  from  New 
York  on  their  long  journey  across  the  sea. 


CHAPTER  XH 
THE  SECOND  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND 

ON  this  voyage  to  England  an  incident  occurred 
which  shows  Franklin's  keenness  of  observation. 
One  day  he  noticed  that  the  wakes  of  two  of  the 
ships  which  were  accompanying  his  vessel  were 
remarkably  smooth,  while  everywhere  else  the 
water  was  quite  rough.  Puzzled,  he  called  the 
captain's  attention  to  the  circumstance,  and  asked 
him  the  meaning  of  it. 

"I  suppose,"  said  the  captain,  "that  the  cooks 
have  just  been  emptying  their  greasy  water  through 
the  scuppers,  and  that  it  has  greased  the  sides 
of  the  ships  a  little." 

Franklin  was  not  disposed  to  take  the  explanation 
seriously;  but  some  years  afterward,  as  he  was 
walking  beside  a  pond  which  happened  to  be  ruffled 
by  the  wind,  he  remembered  the  incident,  and,  pro- 
curing a  cruet  of  oil,  dropped  a  little  of  it  on  the 
water.  "It  spread  itself,"  he  says,  "with  surpris- 
ing swiftness  upon  the  surface;  but  the  effect  of 
smoothing  the  waves  was  not  produced ;  for  I  had 


THE  SECOND  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND       in 

applied  it  first  on  the  leeward  side  of  the  pond, 
where  the  waves  were  greatest ;  and  the  wind  drove 
my  oil  back  upon  the  shore.  I  then  went  to  the 
windward  side,  where  they  began  to  form ;  and  there 
the  oil,  though  not  more  than  a  teaspoonful,  pro- 
duced an  instant  calm  over  a  space  several  yards 
square,  which  spread  amazingly,  and  extended 
itself  gradually  till  it  reached  the  lee  side,  making 
all  that  quarter  of  the  pond,  perhaps  half  an  acre, 
as  smooth  as  a  looking-glass.  After  this  I  contrived 
to  take  with  me,  whenever  I  went  into  the  country, 
a  little  oil  in  the  upper  hollow  joint  of  my  bamboo 
cane,  with  which  I  might  repeat  the  experiment  as 
opportunity  should  offer,  and  I  found  it  constantly 
to  succeed." 

The  most  important  of  these  experiments  was 
made  at  the  seaport  of  Portsmouth,  in  England, 
in  the  presence  of  a  few  naval  officers  and  members 
of  the  Royal  Society,  and  resulted  in  the  general 
recognition  of  the  power  of  oil  to  quiet  the  sea. 

To  return,  however,  to  his  mission  to  England. 
He  and  his  son  landed  at  Falmouth  about  the 
middle  of  July,  and  set  out  immediately  for  Lon- 
don, where  they  arrived  on  July  26,  1757. 

The  appearance  of  Franklin  now  was  in  striking 
contrast  with  the  raw-boned,  youthful  Franklin 
of  nineteen  who  had  landed  in  London  thirty-two 


112  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

years  before.  Then  he  was  penniless  and  without 
work ;  now  he  was  rich,  with  a  servant  for  himself, 
a  negro  for  his  son,  and  a  carriage  of  his  own  to 
convey  him  wherever  he  wished  to  go.  Then  he 
had  been  sent  to  London  under  false  pretenses ; 
now  he  was  the  accredited  agent  of  one  of  the 
largest  and  most  important  colonies  in  America, 
with  full  power  to  look  after  her  affairs.  Then  he 
had  no  friends;  now  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Royal  Society,  and  one  of  the  most  famous  men  in 
Europe.  All  the  learned  scientists  hastened  to 
call  on  him;  letters  of  congratulation  came  from 
electricians  in  Holland,  Germany,  France,  and  Italy; 
he  was  received  and  entertained  everywhere. 

Comfortably  settled  in  his  lodgings,  he  at  once 
took  up  the  business  upon  which  he  had  been  sent. 
A  meeting  was  arranged  between  him  and  the 
proprietaries  at  Thomas  Perm's  house  in  Spring 
Garden.  Franklin  explained  at  great  length  the 
Assembly's  attitude  and  the  grievances  of  the 
people.  The  Penns  listened  in  a  haughty  way, 
but  would  agree  to  nothing.  They  asked  him  to 
put  his  complaints  down  on  paper.  He  did  so. 
They  said  they  would  give  the  matter  their  atten- 
tion. Franklin  had  to  be  satisfied  with  this ;  but 
he  felt  sure  that  the  proprietaries  would  do  nothing, 
and  so  tried  to  gain  his  end  by  other  means. 


THE  SECOND  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND        113 

Following  an  old  custom  of  his,  he  had  his  son 
William  write  articles  for  the  papers,  giving  the 
true  state  of  affairs  in  Pennsylvania.  When  these 
articles  had  attracted  some  notice,  he  foDowed 
them  up  by  a  large  volume  containing  the  complete 
history  of  the  disputes  between  the  Assembly  and 
the  governors,  from  William  Penn  to  Governor 
Denny.  This  work  was  also  written  by  his  son, 
but  under  the  elder  Franklin's  guidance.  When 
the  book  was  published,  Franklin  saw  that  copies 
of  it  were  sent  to  all  the  influential  statesmen  in 
England;  and  before  long  he  had  the  pleasure  of 
knowing  that  it  was  awakening  public  sympathy 
for  the  people  of  Pennsylvania. 

Meanwhile  nothing  had  been  heard  from  the 
Penns.  A  year  passed  before  they  finally  took 
any  notice  of  his  complaints,  and  then  they  did 
not  reply  to  him,  but  sent  their  answer  direct  to 
Governor  Denny  in  Philadelphia.  In  this  answer 
they  denied  all  of  Franklin's  claims,  and  refused 
to  grant  any  concessions  whatever.  The  document 
had  no  apparent  effect,  either  on  the  Assembly, 
which  still  placed  implicit  confidence  in  Franklin, 
or  on  Franklin  himself,  who  continued  to  work 
for  the  interest  of  the  colony  in  his  own  wise  way. 

He  widened  the  circle  of  his  friends,  made  the 
acquaintance  of  noblemen  and  members  of  Parlia- 


114  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

ment,  and,  by  letting  them  know  the  facts  of  the 
case,  won  many  of  them  over  to  his  side.  He 
even  tried  to  obtain  an  audience  with  the  great 
William  Pitt,  the  Secretary  of  State,  and  the  most 
powerful  man  in  all  England;  and  though  he 
failed  in  this,  he  became  known  to  some  of  Pitt's 
secretaries,  and  through  them  he  reached  the  great 
man's  ear. 

Meantime  a  very  important  event  had  taken 
place  in  Philadelphia.  Governor  Denny,  grown 
weary  of  his  continuous  disputes  with  the  Assembly, 
had  at  last  been  persuaded  to  ignore  his  instruc- 
tions, and  to  give  his  consent  to  a  law  which  taxed 
the  Penns'  estates  equally  with  other  lands  in  the 
colony.  This  law  was  for  the  purpose  of  raising 
one  hundred  thousand  pounds  —  half  a  million 
dollars  —  for  the  defense  of  the  province,  and  it 
provided  that  the  money  should  be  printed  and 
issued.  It  was  passed  early  in  1758,  when  Franklin 
had  been  about  eight  months  in  England. 

Now,  one  of  the  conditions  under  which  the 
Penns  held  Pennsylvania  was  that  all  laws  passed 
by  the  Assembly  and  consented  to  by  the  governor, 
should  be  sent  to  England  for  the  approval  of  the 
king.  There  was  a  committee  in  London  called 
"The  Right  Honorable  the  Lords  of  Committee  of 
his  Majesty's  most  honourable  Privy  Council  for 


THE  SECOND  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND       115 

Plantation  Affairs,"  who  advised  the  king  as  to 
whether  he  should  approve  the  laws  or  not. 

The  law  taxing  the  Perms'  estates  was  forwarded 
to  England  sometime  in  1758  ;  but  it  was  not  until 
the  spring  of  1760  —  almost  two  years  later  — 
that  it  came  up  before  the  Committee.  The 
Perms,  enraged  at  their  governor's  act,  employed 
lawyers  to  oppose  the  law.  Franklin  engaged 
lawyers  to  defend  it.  The  matter  was  argued  at 
great  length  before  the  Committee,  who  finally 
decided  in  the  Penns'  favor,  and  ordered  that  the 
law  should  not  be  allowed. 

Franklin  received  the  decision  of  the  Committee 
just  as  he  was  preparing  to  set  out  for  a  tour  of 
Ireland.  He  had  his  chests  and  saddle-bags  un- 
packed at  once,  and  took  up  the  apparently  hope- 
less task  of  having  the  report  set  aside. 

He  first  explained  to  the  Committee  the  ruinous 
consequences  which  would  result  to  the  province 
if  the  law  was  not  passed,  since  the  money  which  it 
authorized  had  not  only  been  printed  and  issued, 
but  a  great  deal  of  it  had  already  been  spent.  He 
assured  them  that  if  they  would  let  the  law  stand 
he  would  guarantee  that  the  Assembly  would  pass 
another  law  removing  the  objectionable  features. 
There  were  two  special  objections  raised  by  the 
Penns,  and  mentioned  in  the  Committee's  report. 


Ii6  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

The  first  was  that  the  law  would  permit  all  the 
unsurveyed  waste  lands  of  the  proprietaries  to  be 
taxed ;  the  second  was  that  it  would  now  be  possible 
for  the  surveyed  waste  lands  of  the  proprietaries 
to  be  taxed  higher  than  property  of  the  same  de- 
scription owned  by  other  persons.  Franklin  prom- 
ised that  these  objections  would  be  taken  into 
consideration  by  the  Assembly  when  it  passed  the 
new  law.  The  Committee,  won  over  by  his  offer 
and  the  force  of  his  arguments,  withdrew  their  old 
report  and  issued  another,  in  which  the  original 
law  was  allowed  to  remain,  providing  the  objec- 
tions were  removed  as  Franklin  suggested. 

It  is  very  probable  that  he  knew  at  the  time  that 
these  objections  had  no  foundation  in  fact.  At 
any  rate,  the  Assembly  never  passed  the  second 
law;  and  when,  at  the  request  of  the  governor,  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  inquire  into  the 
objections,  it  was  found  that  the  unsurveyed  lands 
of  the  Penns  had  never  been  taxed,  and  that  their 
surveyed  lands  were  taxed  no  higher  than  other 
lands  of  like  character.  Thus,  by  his  shrewdness 
and  tact,  Franklin  gave  the  colonists  the  law  for 
which  they  had  been  struggling  so  bitterly,  and 
won  a  complete  victory  over  the  Penns. 

During  the  long  years  of  waiting  before  the 
matter  was  finally  settled,  he  had  plenty  of  leisure 


THE  SECOND  VISIT  TO  ENGLAND       117 

for  his  own  affairs.  He  employed  it  in  study,  in 
writing,  and  in  traveling  in  England  and  Scotland, 
and  was  everywhere  received  with  open  arms. 

In  the  summer  of  1758  he  spent  a  few  days  at 
the  University  of  Cambridge,  where  he  met  the 
principal  professors,  and  with  them  performed 
numerous  experiments  with  the  recently-invented 
thermometer.  In  the  spring  of  the  following  year 
he  was  given  the  degree  of  Doctor  by  the  Univer- 
sity of  St.  Andrews,  in  Scotland,  a  title  by  which 
he  was  always  afterward  known.  He  visited  this 
university  also,  and  was  welcomed  with  great 
honor  and  respect. 

In  his  lodgings  in  London  he  set  up  his  electrical 
apparatus  and  entertained  his  hosts  of  friends  with 
his  famous  experiments.  His  machine  for  generat- 
ing electricity  was  the  best  and  most  powerful  then 
in  existence,  and  is  said  to  have  been  capable  of 
producing  a  spark  nine  inches  long. 

At  some  of  the  later  gatherings  at  his  lodgings 
he  exhibited  a  musical  instrument  called  the 
armonica,  which  he  had  practically  invented  him- 
self, and  on  which  he  played  very  creditably.  It 
was  made  of  a  number  of  half  spheres  of  glass 
tuned  to  the  different  notes  of  the  piano.  They 
were  set  revolving  by  means  of  a  wheel  and  a 
pedal.  The  player  sat  before  them  and  produced 


Ii8  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

the  notes  by  placing  his  moistened  fingers  on  the 
revolving  rims.  The  idea  was  suggested  to  Frank- 
lin by  seeing  a  friend  of  his  produce  a  musical 
tone  by  rubbing  his  finger  around  the  edge  of  a 
glass  bowl. 

Before  he  had  even  thought  of  perfecting  the 
armonica,  he  was  quite  a  good  performer  on  the 
guitar,  the  harp,  and  the  violin;  and  there  is 
some  reason  to  believe  that  he  even  tried  his  hand 
at  composing  music  himself. 

Of  his  writings  during  this  period,  probably  the 
most  famous  was  a  pamphlet  which  he  wrote  shortly 
after  General  Wolfe's  daring  capture  of  Quebec 
from  the  French.  The  question  arose  whether 
England  should  retain  Canada  or  the  so-called 
Sugar  Islands  of  Guadeloupe  as  a  part  of  the  terms 
of  peace.  Franklin's  pamphlet  was  called  "The 
Interest  of  Great  Britain  Considered,  with  regard 
to  her  Colonies,  and  the  acquisitions  of  Canada 
and  Guadeloupe."  He  was  in  favor  of  the  English 
retaining  Canada,  and  the  sound  arguments  which 
he  advanced  are  said  to  have  influenced  the  govern- 
ment when  it  finally  decided  his  way. 

Mention  has  already  been  made  of  his  experi- 
ments with  the  thermometer  at  Cambridge.  The 
perfection  of  this  instrument  had  interested  scien- 
tists everywhere  in  the  question  of  heat;  and 


THE  SECOND   VISIT  TO  ENGLAND        119 

during  his  residence  in  England  Franklin  attempted 
many  experiments  to  test  the  effect  of  heat  upon 
different  colors  as  well  as  upon  woolens  and  other 
materials  for  clothing.  One  of  these  he  describes 
very  interestingly  in  a  letter  to  a  friend. 

"I  took,"  he  says,  "a  number  of  little  square  pieces  of 
broadcloth  from  a  tailor's  pattern-card,  of  various  colors. 
There  were  black,  deep  blue,  lighter  blue,  green,  purple, 
red,  yellow,  white,  and  other  colors,  or  shades  of  colors. 
I  laid  them  all  out  upon  the  snow  in  a  bright  sunshiny  morn- 
ing. In  a  few  hours  (I  cannot  now  be  exact  as  to  the  time) 
the  black,  being  warmed  most  by  the  sun,  was  sunk  so  low 
as  to  be  below  the  stroke  of  the  sun's  rays ;  the  dark  blue 
almost  as  low,  the  lighter  blue  not  quite  so  much  as  the  dark, 
the  other  colors  less  as  they  were  lighter;  and  the  quite 
white  remained  on  the  surface  of  the  snow,  not  having 
entered  it  at  all.  .  .  .  May  we  not  learn  from  hence,  that 
black  clothes  are  not  so  fit  to  wear  hi  a  hot  sunny  climate 
or  season,  as  white  ones?" 

This  principle  is  well  established  to-day,  and 
recognized  by  every  one  when  having  clothes  made 
for  hot  or  cold  weather;  but  Franklin  was  the 
first  to  discover  it,  and  suggest  its  usefulness  to 
the  world. 

With  his  victory  over  the  proprietaries,  his 
work  abroad  was  practically  ended.  He  remained 
about  a  year  and  a  half  longer,  however,  taking 
care  of  some  unimportant  matters  for  the  colony 


120  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

and  visiting  his  countless  acquaintances  and  friends. 
Before  he  finally  left,  two  events  took  place  which 
were  the  cause  of  much  pleasure  and  satisfaction, 
both  to  himself  and  to  his  son.  Oxford,  the  oldest 
and  most  famous  university  in  England,  following 
the  example  of  St.  Andrews,  presented  him  with 
the  degree  of  Doctor,  in  recognition  of  his  services 
to  science  and  philosophy;  and  shortly  after, 
through  the  influence  of  some  of  his  powerful 
friends,  the  important  post  of  governor  of  New 
Jersey  was  granted  to  his  son. 

Loaded  down  with  these  additional  honors, 
Franklin  set  sail  for  home  the  last  of  August,  1762, 
and  reached  Philadelphia  in  the  autumn  of  the 
same  year. 


CHAPTER   XIII 
THE  PAXTON  MASSACRE 

PEACE  between  England  and  France  was  for- 
mally declared  on  February  10,  1763.  So  far 
as  the  two  countries  were  concerned  this  ended 
the  French  and  Indian  War,  but  it  did  not  end  the 
troubles  with  the  Indians  themselves.  All  along 
the  outlying  settlements,  from  Niagara  to  Florida, 
the  savages  continued  to  burn  villages,  murder 
families,  and  lay  waste  farms  and  homes. 

Pennsylvania  suffered  more  than  other  colonies. 
From  the  early  spring  of  1763  to  the  following 
winter  all  the  western  part  of  the  province  was 
overrun  by  Indians. 

Among  some  of  the  people  living  in  that  region 
it  was  the  opinion  that  the  trouble  was  caused 
by  the  Quakers'  policy  of  making  friends  with 
the  savages.  The  idea  spread  rapidly;  and  by 
December  the  anger  of  the  settlers  along  the 
western  frontier  had  been  roused  to  fever  heat. 

Near  the  town  of  Lancaster  there  was  a  small 
village  of  Indians,  the  remnant  of  one  of  the  tribes 

121 


122  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

which  had  made  the  original  treaty  with  William 
Penn.  They  did  not  belong  to  hostile  bands,  but 
had  always  lived  peaceable  lives,  and  had  remained 
friendly  with  the  whites.  On  December  14  a 
party  of  heavily  armed  horsemen  from  the  neigh- 
boring district  of  Paxton  descended  upon  the  little 
Indian  village  at  dawn,  killed  and  scalped  every 
Indian  in  it,  and  burned  the  place  to  the  ground. 
It  chanced  that  about  fourteen  of  the  inhabitants 
escaped.  These  were  hastily  gathered  together 
by  the  magistrates  of  the  surrounding  country 
and  placed  in  the  workhouse  in  Lancaster  for 
safe  keeping.  Two  weeks  later  the  same  band  of 
horsemen  rode  into  Lancaster,  forced  their  way 
into  the  workhouse,  and  massacred  these  Indians 
with  even  more  brutality  than  they  had  shown 
toward  the  others. 

Franklin,  aroused  by  the  atrocity,  wrote  a  strong 
pamphlet  denouncing  the  act.  Many  sided  with 
him,  but  the  general  feeling  appeared  to  be  in  favor 
of  the  settlers ;  and  all  efforts  to  arrest  the  band  of 
horsemen  proved  fruitless. 

While  the  deed  was  still  fresh  in  people's  minds, 
a  party  of  friendly  Indians,  one  hundred  and  forty- 
five  in  number,  were  brought  to  Philadelphia  by  a 
Moravian  missionary,  and  lodged  there  for  safety. 
The  news  was  sent  to  the  Paxton  district ;  and  a 


THE  PAXTON  MASSACRE  123 

band  of  several  hundred,  armed  with  hatchets  and 
rifles,  set  out  for  Philadelphia.  The  city  was 
terror-stricken.  John  Penn,  the  son  of  one  of  the 
proprietaries,  was  the  newly  appointed  governor. 
He  had  been  in  the  country  only  a  few  months 
and  felt  himself  incapable  of  coping  with  the  situa- 
tion. Like  the  governors  before  him,  he  turned 
to  Franklin  for  help,  and  even  made  his  headquarters 
in  the  latter's  house. 

Following  his  method  of  a  few  years  before, 
Franklin  again  formed  an  association  for  defense, 
and  managed  to  raise  a  regiment  of  a  thousand  men. 

Meanwhile  the  Paxton  party  had  arrived  at 
Germantown,  only  a  few  miles  from  the  city. 
There  was  a  hurried  consultation  between  the 
governor  and  his  council,  at  the  end  of  which 
Franklin  and  three  other  citizens  rode  out  to  meet 
the  invaders  and  try  to  placate  them.  The  regi- 
ment, ready  to  march  at  any  moment,  remained 
drawn  up  in  the  city.  The  barracks  where  the 
Indians  had  been  sent  was  closely  guarded.  Every 
instant  the  city  expected  to  be  attacked.  In  the 
mean  time,  however,  Franklin  had  succeeded  in 
his  mission.  He  not  only  convinced  the  leaders 
of  the  Paxtons  that  the  Indians  were  too  well 
protected  to  be  taken,  but  actually  persuaded 
them  to  give  up  their  expedition  and  turn  back. 


124  „  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Practically  alone,  he  had  saved  the  city  from 
invasion  and  riot;  but  there  were  those  who 
believed  that  the  Paxton  band  were  right  in  wish- 
ing to  kill  off  the  Indians,  and,  as  Franklin  himself 
says,  "I  became  a  less  man  than  ever;  for  I  had, 
by  this  transaction,  made  myself  many  enemies 
among  the  populace." 

He  might  also  have  added  that  he  had  made 
enemies  among  the  richer  classes,  including  the 
governor's  party,  and  even  the  governor  himself; 
for  Penn,  instead  of  being  grateful  to  Franklin 
for  his  timely  assistance,  now  openly  sided  with 
those  who  favored  the  massacre  of  the  Indians  at 
Lancaster,  and  refused  absolutely  to  take  Franklin's 
advice  and  order  the  arrest  of  the  Paxton  band. 
So,  through  his  desire  for  justice,  and  his  friendship 
for  the  inoffensive  and  friendly  Indians,  Franklin 
found  a  strong  party  arrayed  against  him;  but 
his  friends  were  still  in  power  in  the  Assembly; 
and  when  they  met  for  the  regular  session,  early 
in  1764,  they  were  ready  for  the  struggle  which 
was  about  to  take  place.  As  usual  the  trouble 
arose  over  certain  laws  to  which  the  governor 
would  not  give  his  consent;  one,  drawn  up  by 
Franklin  himself,  granted  to  the  militia  regiments  of 
the  colony  the  right  to  vote  for  their  own  officers, 
instead  of  allowing  the  governor  to  appoint  them, 


THE   PAXTON  MASSACRE  125 

as  had  previously  been  the  case;  another,  an  act 
to  raise  money  for  defense,  brought  up  once  more 
the  disputed  question  of  taxing  the  proprietaries' 
estates.  The  law,  as  passed  by  the  Assembly, 
taxed  the  Penns'  lands  equally  with  others,  but 
the  governor,  in  spite  of  the  king's  decision  to  the 
contrary,  insisted  that  they  should  be  taxed  at 
a  lower  rate,  and  refused  to  sign  the  act. 

After  a  heated  debate  the  Assembly  decided  to 
consult  the  people  as  to  whether  they  should  not 
petition  the  king  to  remove  the  proprietaries  and 
make  Pennsylvania  a  royal  province.  They  ad- 
journed on  March  20,  and  during  the  next  seven 
weeks  meetings  were  held,  the  question  was  dis- 
cussed, and  numerous  petitions  were  signed  all  over 
the  colony.  When  the  Assembly  met  again  on 
May  14,  there  were  three  thousand  names  in  favor 
of  a  change  of  government,  and  only  three  hundred 
in  favor  of  the  Penns.  The  Assembly  immediately 
passed  a  resolution  to  appeal  to  the  king  to  resume 
the  government  of  the  province  in  his  own  name, 
and  shortly  after  it  adjourned. 

In  those  days  the  members  of  the  Assembly 
were  elected  for  one  year  only,  the  election  occur- 
ring on  the  first  of  October.  All  that  summer  the 
feeling  between  Franklin's  party  and  that  opposing 
him  ran  high.  Every  one  knew  that  the  point  at 


126  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

issue  was  whether  proprietary  rule  should  end 
or  not;  and  Franklin's  strong  leaning  toward 
converting  Pennsylvania  into  a  royal  province, 
together  with  his  defense  of  the  Indians,  made 
Governor  Penn  and  his  side  very  bitter  against 
him.  Franklin  and  a  man  named  Galloway  were 
the  candidates  named  to  represent  the  city  on 
what  was  called  "the  Old  Ticket." 

On  Election  Day  the  voting  place  was  opened 
at  nine  in  the  morning,  and  the  steps  leading  to  it 
were  so  crowded  with  voters  that  it  took  each  of 
them  a  quarter  of  an  hour  to  reach  the  voting  place. 
The  voting  continued  all  day  and  well  into  the 
night.  By  three  o'clock  the  next  morning  "the 
New  Ticket"  men,  the  party  opposing  Franklin, 
suggested  that  the  polls  be  closed.  Franklin's 
party  objected,  as  they  had  many  old  and  crippled 
voters  who  were  not  able  to  stand  in  the  crowd 
and  were  just  then  being  brought  up  in  chairs  and 
stretchers  to  vote.  These  men,  about  two  hundred 
in  all,  voted  between  three  and  six  o'clock  in  the 
morning.  Meanwhile  the  other  side,  taking  alarm, 
had  sent  horsemen  and  footmen  to  Germantown 
and  other  near-by  towns  to  gather  voters  of  their 
own ;  and  by  nine  o'clock  these  began  to  pour  in. 
The  voting  did  not  end  until  three  in  the  after- 
noon, at  which  time  the  New  Ticket  party  had 


THE  PAXTON  MASSACRE  127 

succeeded  in  procuring  five  hundred  additional 
votes ;  and  Franklin  and  Galloway  were  defeated 
by  the  narrow  margin  of  twenty-five. 

It  was  the  first  and  only  time  in  his  life  that 
Franklin  ever  failed  to  win  a  public  office,  and  in 
this  instance  it  was  perhaps  very  fortunate  that 
he  did  fail ;  for  his  party,  again  in  control  of  the 
Assembly,  immediately  appointed  him  to  act  as 
their  agent  in  England,  and  present  to  the  king 
their  petition  asking  for  a  change  of  government. 

On  November  7,  1764,  Franklin  left  Philadel- 
phia. Three  hundred  citizens  on  horseback  es- 
corted him  to  Chester,  on  the  Delaware  River,  where 
his  ship  was  awaiting  him. 

There,  with  cheers  and  good  wishes  ringing  in 
his  ears,  he  set  sail.  A  month  later  he  reached 
London  and  at  once  took  up  his  old  lodgings  in 
Craven  Street.  When  the  news  of  his  safe  arrival 
was  learned  in  Philadelphia,  his  friends  made  it 
an  occasion  for  festivities;  and  the  church  bells 
were  rung  until  nearly  midnight. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

FRANKLIN  THE  AGENT 

So  far  as  the  petition  to  the  king  was  concerned, 
Franklin  was  never  able  to  accomplish  anything. 
In  the  ten  years  between  1765  and  1775,  when  the 
troubles  which  resulted  in  the  Revolution  reached  a 
climax,  he  tried  at  various  times  to  get  the  govern- 
ment to  take  the  matter  up,  but  so  many  other  im- 
portant things  relating  to  all  the  colonies  were  then 
stirring  the  people  that  the  petition  sank  into 
insignificance. 

He  had  been  in  England  only  a  few  weeks  when 
the  famous  Stamp  Act  came  before  Parliament. 
This  Stamp  Act  was  a  law  which  forced  the  colonists 
to  pay  a  tax  directly  to  the  English  government. 
The  tax  was  to  be  placed  on  all  legal  documents, 
newspapers,  pamphlets,  advertisements,  and  even 
almanacs.  Stamps  were  used,  and  were  pasted  on 
the  paper  taxed ;  hence  the  name  of  the  Stamp  Act. 

Until  then  the  colonies  had  been  allowed  to  pass 
their  own  laws  as  to  taxation,  and  to  use  the  money 
so  raised  for  their  own  purposes.  This  was  the 

128 


FRANKLIN    THE    AGENT  129 

first  time  that  the  English  government  had  inter- 
fered ;  and  as  none  of  the  colonies  was  represented 
in  Parliament,  the  indignation  of  the  people  was 
immediately  roused. 

Before  the  passage  of  the  law,  Franklin  and 
agents  in  London  for  other  colonies  did  their  ut- 
most to  persuade  the  head  of  the  party  in  power, 
Mr.  Grenville  and  his  friends,  to  withdraw  the 
act.  Franklin  was  particularly  strong  in  his  argu- 
ments, although  neither  he  nor  the  other  agents  — 
nor  any  one  in  England,  for  that  matter  —  foresaw 
the  troubles  that  would  result.  In  spite  of  his 
protests  the  law  was  passed ;  and  Grenville,  hop- 
ing to  please  the  people  in  Pennsylvania,  asked 
Franklin  to  name  some  honest  and  responsible 
man  as  the  officer  to  distribute  the  stamps  and 
receive  the  tax  hi  that  province.  Franklin  sug- 
gested John  Hughes,  a  merchant  of  Philadelphia, 
a  member  of  the  Assembly,  and  one  of  his  intimate 
friends. 

Hughes  was  appointed.  Unaware  of  the  rising 
storm  in  America,  Franklin  thought  he  had  con- 
ferred an  honor  upon  his  old  acquaintance;  but 
when,  in  July  of  1765,  the  news  of  the  people's 
indignation  and  wrath  began  to  reach  London,  he 
realized  that  he  had  made  Hughes  one  of  the  most 
detested  men  in  the  whole  colony. 


130  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

From  the  very  first  the  colonists  determined  to 
oppose  the  tax.  At  every  meeting  held  throughout 
the  country  resolutions  were  passed  to  that  effect, 
and  the  people  pledged  themselves  to  buy  no  more 
goods  made  in  England,  to  try  to  grow  their  own 
wool,  and  to  wear  only  the  clothes  which  they  them- 
selves could  make.  When  the  document  appoint- 
ing Hughes  arrived,  the  people  turned  on  him.  He 
was  shunned  by  every  one ;  both  he  and  his  house 
were  threatened  with  attack ;  and  rather  than  run 
the  risk  of  being  mobbed  and  having  his  property 
destroyed,  he  resigned  his  position. 

Even  Franklin  himself  did  not  escape  public 
disapproval.  The  bells,  which  had  announced 
his  arrival  in  England,  were  muffled  and  tolled  dis- 
mally, to  show  how  deeply  the  people  were  incensed. 
They  even  called  him  a  traitor  and  a  turncoat. 
His  enemies,  seizing  the  opportunity  to  arouse 
sentiment  against  him,  had  pamphlets  and  carica- 
tures, representing  him  as  unfaithful  to  his  trust, 
printed  and  circulated.  There  was  even  a  time 
when  the  new  house  on  Market  Street,  which  his 
wife  had  had  built  during  his  absence,  was  in  danger 
of  being  raided  by  the  angry  mob. 

From  the  instant  the  news  of  the  colonists' 
determination  to  fight  the  tax  reached  his  ears, 
until  Parliament  opened  in  December,  Franklin 


FRANKLIN   THE    AGENT  131 

bent  every  energy  toward  getting  the  Stamp  Act 
repealed.  He  succeeded  so  well  that  Parliament 
itself  decided  that  the  true  state  of  affairs  in 
America  should  be  looked  into ;  and  for  six  weeks 
the  members  heard  evidence  and  examined  wit- 
nesses relating  to  the  colonies  and  their  grievances. 

Franklin  was  one  of  the  principal  and  most 
important  witnesses.  His  knowledge  of  facts, 
and  his  experience  as  a  member  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Assembly,  gave  his  statements  the  force  of  truth, 
while  his  native  wit  and  humor  enabled  him  con- 
stantly to  turn  the  tables  on  the  men  opposing 
him.  As  an  acquaintance,  the  Rev.  George 
Whitefield,  wrote  of  him:  "Our  worthy  friend, 
Dr.  Franklin,  has  gained  immortal  honor  by  his 
behavior.  .  .  .  The  answer  was  always  found 
equal  if  not  superior  to  the  questioner.  He  stood 
unappalled,  gave  pleasure  to  his  friends,  and  did 
honor  to  his  country." 

The  immediate  result  of  his  examination  was  the 
repeal  of  the  Stamp  Act,  which  took  place  a  few 
days  after  the  hearing  of  witnesses  was  closed. 
Franklin's  delight  at  the  happy  outcome  of  the 
matter  was  unbounded.  Although  he  may  have 
appeared  to  submit  to  the  act  in  the  beginning,  it 
was  through  his  perseverance  and  courage  that 
the  law  was  abolished ;  and  when  the  news  of  his 


132  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

success  reached  America,  he  was  again  hailed  as 
the  hero  of  the  colonies.  Even  his  old  enemies  in 
Philadelphia  forgot  their  grudges  and  assisted  in 
celebrating  his  victory.  Governor  Penn  and  the 
mayor  of  Philadelphia  gave  a  party  for  three  hun- 
dred gentlemen  at  the  State  House,  at  which  they 
drank  his  health  and  sang  his  praises.  The  city 
was  illuminated  in  his  honor ;  and  on  the  occasion 
of  the  king's  birthday  a  great  banquet  was  given 
on  the  banks  of  the  Schuylkill  River,  followed 
by  a  procession  in  which  the  principal  object  was 
a  huge  barge  named  FRANKLIN. 

With  his  work  satisfactorily  ended,  he  sent  in 
his  resignation  as  agent  to  the  Assembly,  and  asked 
their  leave  to  return  to  Philadelphia;  but  they 
refused  to  allow  him  to  give  up  his  position,  and 
immediately  appointed  him  to  serve  for  another 
year. 

The  joy  of  the  Americans,  however,  was  short- 
lived. Scarcely  more  than  a  year  later  the  Eng- 
lish government  again  took  up  the  question  of 
taxing  the  colonies,  and  passed  the  celebrated  law 
which  taxed  tea  and  other  goods  sent  to  the  prov- 
inces from  England.  The  tax  was  small,  and  in 
itself  of  little  account;  but  the  colonists,  still 
smarting  under  the  sting  of  the  Stamp  Act,  re- 
fused to  pay  it,  and  declared  that  they  would  oppose 


FRANKLIN    THE    AGENT  133 

it  to  the  end.  Like  the  Stamp  Act,  it  was  taxation 
without  representation,  and  entirely  unfair  and 
unjust.  Riots  took  place  in  Boston  and  else- 
where. People  gave  up  using  tea  and  all  the  other 
articles  subject  to  the  tax. 

Franklin,  in  spite  of  his  previous  success,  was  now 
powerless  to  stop  the  passage  of  this  law.  He  used 
every  argument  that  he  could  think  of  to  persuade 
the  government  not  to  anger  the  colonists  again; 
but  this  time  the  party  in  power  was  pledged  to 
put  the  matter  through  and  would  not  listen  to 
him.  His  own  opposition  to  the  tax,  and  the  cour- 
ageous way  in  which  he  was  ready  to  meet  it,  are 
well  expressed  in  his  own  words:  "I  have  some 
little  property  in  America,"  he  writes;  "I  will 
freely  spend  nineteen  shillings  in  the  pound  to 
defend  my  right  of  giving  or  refusing  the  other 
shilling ;  and,  after  all,  if  I  cannot  defend  that  right, 
I  can  retire  cheerfully  with  my  little  family  into 
the  boundless  woods  of  America,  which  are  sure  to 
afford  freedom  and  subsistence  to  any  man  who 
can  bait  a  hook  or  pull  a  trigger."  These  were 
brave  words  for  a  man  of  sixty-one ! 

Following  the  custom  which  he  pursued  during 
his  previous  stay  in  England,  Franklin  spent  a 
great  part  of  his  summers  in  traveling.  It  was  dur- 
ing this  summer  of  1767,  shortly  after  the  new  tax 


134  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

law  had  been  passed,  that  he  paid  his  first  visit 
to  Paris.  Sir  John  Pringle,  the  queen's  physician, 
and  one  of  Franklin's  closest  friends  in  England, 
accompanied  him.  They  traveled  by  post  chaise 
from  London  to  Dover,  crossed  the  English  Channel 
to  Calais,  and  from  there  journeyed  by  carriage  to 
Paris.  Owing  to  the  fame  of  his  experiments  in 
electricity,  his  name  was  well  known  in  France, 
and  he  found  a  hearty  welcome  awaiting  him.  He 
was  even  introduced  at  the  French  Court. 

"We  went  to  Versailles  last  Sunday,"  he  writes  in  a 
letter,  "and  had  the  honor  to  be  presented  to  the  king, 
Louis  XV ;  he  spoke  to  both  of  us  very  graciously  and  very 
cheerfully,  is  a  handsome  man,  has  a  very  lively  look,  and 
appears  younger  than  he  is.  In  the  evening  we  were  at 
the  Grand  Convert  where  the  family  sup  in  public.  The 
table  was  half  a  hollow  square,  the  service  gold." 

When  any  of  the  royal  family  made  a  sign  that 
they  wished  a  drink,  two  attendants  came  from 
an  inner  room,  one  bearing  wine,  the  other  water. 
Each  man  drank  a  little  of  what  he  had  brought 
before  presenting  it  to  the  guest. 

"Their  [the  diners']  distance  from  each  other,"  Franklin 
continues,  "was  such  as  that  other  chairs  might  have  been 
placed  between  any  two  of  them.  An  officer  of  the  court 
brought  us  up  through  the  crowd  of  spectators,  and  placed 
Sir  John  so  as  to  stand  between  the  queen  and  Madame 


FRANKLIN    THE    AGENT  135 

Victoire.  The  king  talked  a  good  deal  to  Sir  John,  asking 
many  questions  about  our  royal  family ;  and  did  me  too  the 
honor  of  taking  some  notice  of  me." 

No  doubt  the  incident  reminded  Franklin  of  an 
old  saying  of  his  father's,  who,  in  his  instructions 
to  the  boy,  frequently  repeated  the  proverb  of 
Solomon,  "  Seest  thou  a  man  diligent  in  his  calling, 
he  shall  stand  before  kings."  In  Franklin's  case 
the  words  were  literally  fulfilled;  and  before  he 
died  he  had  not  only  "stood  before"  George  II  and 
George  III  of  England,  Louis  XV  and  Louis  XVI 
of  France,  and  Emperor  Joseph  of  Austria,  —  five 
kings  in  all,  —  but  he  had  sat  down  with  one,  the 
king  of  Denmark,  to  dinner. 

The  trip  to  Paris  lasted  only  a  month,  but  it 
gave  Franklin  an  insight  into  French  manners  and 
customs  which  was  to  be  of  immense  value  to  him 
later  on. 

On  his  return  to  England  all  hope  of  averting 
the  trouble  between  the  mother  country  and  the 
colonies  appeared  to  be  at  an  end,  and  he  was  pre- 
paring to  leave  for  home,  when,  in  the  spring  of 
1768,  the  newly  founded  colony  of  Georgia  made 
him  her  English  agent.  The  next  year  New  Jersey 
followed  the  example  of  Georgia,  and  in  1770 
Massachusetts,  his  native  province,  honored  him 
in  the  same  way.  A  young  man  named  Arthur 


136  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Lee  was  appointed  by  Massachusetts  to  act  as  a 
substitute  in  case  Franklin  should  be  away  from 
London  or  should  return  home. 

It  was  in  connection  with  his  appointment  as 
agent  for  Massachusetts  that  a  very  disagreeable 
incident  occurred.  As  was  the  custom,  he  called 
on  Lord  Hillsborough,  the  minister  who  had  charge 
of  American  affairs,  to  announce  his  appointment 
and  present  his  commission.  Lord  Hillsborough 
insisted  that  he  was  not  properly  appointed. 
Franklin  showed  him  his  commission.  Lord  Hills- 
borough  refused  to  recognize  it,  since  it  had  not 
been  consented  to  by  the  governor  of  Massachu- 
setts, and  he  declared  that  no  agent  could  be  elected 
without  the  governor's  consent.  This  was  some- 
thing new  to  Franklin.  He  asked  for  his  commis- 
sion, which  Lord  Hillsborough  was  still  holding ; 
and  when  it  was  returned  to  him,  he  begged  his  Lord- 
ship's pardon  for  taking  up  so  much  of  his  time. 

"It  is,  I  believe,"  he  continued,  "of  no  great  importance 
whether  the  appointment  is  acknowledged  or  not,  for  I  have 
not  the  least  conception  that  an  agent  can  at  present  be  of 
any  use  to  any  of  the  colonies.  I  shall  therefore  give  your 
Lordship  no  further  trouble." 

Franklin  withdrew,  knowing  that  his  last  chance 
of  getting  the  colonists'  grievances  before  the  govern- 
ment had  been  taken  away.  Refused  recognition 


FRANKLIN   THE    AGENT  137 

as  agent,  there  was  nothing  he  could  do  except 
write  pamphlets  and  articles  for  the  papers,  in  the 
hope  that  the  English  people  themselves  might  be 
led  to  see  the  unfair  way  in  which  the  colonies 
were  being  treated ;  but  they  appear  to  have  taken 
very  little  interest  in  the  dispute,  and  his  labors  were 
wasted.  It  was  at  this  time  that  he  first  began 
to  realize  what  the  outcome  of  the  quarrel  would 
be;  and  in  a  letter  written  to  the  Assembly  of 
Massachusetts,  in  May,  1771,  he  foretells  the  revolt 
of  the  colonies  and  their  final  break  with  England. 
In  this  year  a  curious  incident  took  place.  A 
bookseller  with  whom  Franklin  dealt  sent  word 
that  he  had  a  collection  of  books  which  he  thought 
might  interest  him.  Franklin  found  that  the  books 
were  thirty  volumes  of  bound  pamphlets,  printed 
in  1715.  Each  volume  had  notes  and  comments 
written  by  a  previous  owner  on  the  margins  of 
the  pages.  Something  familiar  in  the  penmanship 
caught  his  eye ;  and  on  examining  it  closer  he  dis- 
covered that  it  was  the  handwriting  of  his  Uncle 
Benjamin,  the  favorite  uncle  of  his  boyhood.  The 
books  had  evidently  belonged  to  this  uncle  and  had 
been  sold  by  him  when  he  went  to  live  in  Boston, 
fifty-six  years  before.  "The  oddity,"  says  Frank- 
lin, "is  that  the  bookseller,  who  could  suspect 
nothing  of  any  relation  between  me  and  the  col- 


138  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

lector,  should  happen  to  make  me  the  offer  of 
them."  Needless  to  say  Franklin  purchased  the 
books. 

Among  his  important  discoveries  of  this  period 
was  the  fact  that  repeated  breathing  of  the  atmos- 
phere poisons  it.  He  proved  this  by  breathing 
through  a  tube  into  a  deep  glass  mug,  and  then 
putting  a  lighted  candle  into  the  mug.  The  candle 
was  instantly  extinguished,  and  could  not  be  made 
to  burn  in  the  mug  until  the  bad  air  had  been  puri- 
fied. From  this  experiment  he  drew  the  conclusion, 
now  so  well  known  to  all,  that  fresh  air  was  necessary 
for  the  preservation  of  health.  He  was  one  of  the 
first  to  condemn  the  practice  of  sleeping  in  rooms 
with  closed  windows,  and  insisted  on  having  bed- 
rooms, sick  rooms,  and  especially  hospitals,  prop- 
erly ventilated. 

In  the  world  of  science  and  learning  Franklin 
was  now,  as  he  had  been  for  years  past,  in  the 
foremost  rank.  He  was  a  valued  member  of  nearly 
every  learned  association  and  club  in  all  Europe. 
He  was  a  manager  of  the  Royal  Society,  and  presi- 
dent of  the  recently-founded  American  Philo- 
sophical Society.  He  was  one  of  the  few  foreign 
members  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences  in 
France.  His  writings  on  philosophical  and  scien- 
tific subjects  were  read  everywhere.  Already 


FRANKLIN    THE    AGENT  139 

three  editions  of  his  works  had  been  published  in 
Paris,  and  in  1773  a  new  edition  of  them  came  out 
in  England. 

He  was  the  one  American  who  had  won  recog- 
nition and  an  enviable  name  for  himself  in  Europe 
—  the  only  man,  probably,  who  might  have  healed 
the  breach  between  England  and  the  colonies. 
Yet,  in  spite  of  his  fame  and  his  world-wide  repu- 
tation for  clear-headed  intelligence  and  common 
sense,  the  English  government  paid  no  heed  to 
his  warnings;  and,  as  the  storm  gathered  and 
broke,  he  was  among  the  first  to  feel  its  brunt. 


CHAPTER  XV 
THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS 

TOWARD  the  end  of  1772,  while  talking  to  a 
member  of  Parliament  about  the  situation  in 
America,  Franklin  happened  to  remark  that  all 
of  the  offensive  acts  and  measures  which  had  been 
passed  against  the  colonies  had  originated  in  Eng- 
land. The  member  of  Parliament  denied  this, 
declaring  that  many  of  them  had  been  inspired 
and  even  demanded  by  some  of  the  leading  Amer- 
icans themselves.  When  Franklin  doubted  the 
truth  of  such  a  statement,  his  friend  offered  to 
give  him  absolute  proof. 

A  few  days  later  he  put  in  Franklin's  hands  a 
packet  of  letters  written  by  Thomas  Hutchinson, 
who  was  then  governor  of  Massachusetts,  and  by 
other  men  of  prominence  in  New  England,  to  Wil- 
liam Whately,  a  member  of  Parliament  who  had 
lately  died.  There  were  thirteen  letters  in  all, 
and  they  had  evidently  been  handed  about  and 
read  by  many  persons,  for  when  Franklin  received 
them  they  were  much  soiled  and  torn.  They  were 

140 


THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS      141 

not  private  letters  in  any  sense,  but  had  been 
written  for  the  express  purpose  of  being  shown  in 
public.  Franklin  read  them  through  in  amaze- 
ment. What  the  member  of  Parliament  had  told 
him  was  true.  Hutchinson  and  other  men  had 
grossly  misstated  the  colonists'  side  of  the  question, 
and  had  not  only  grossly  misrepresented  the  col- 
onists' contentions,  but  had  suggested  the  means 
by  which  those  contentions  could  be  set  at  naught. 
They  had  even  asked  for  the  quartering  of  troops 
in  Boston  to  enforce  obedience  to  the  new  laws,  an 
act  which  had  roused  the  fury  of  Massachusetts, 
and  which  later  was  one  of  the  principal  causes  for 
that  colony's  joining  in  the  Revolutionary  War. 

Realizing  the  importance  of  letting  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Assembly  know  the  contents  of  these 
letters,  Franklin  asked  permission  to  copy  them. 
The  member  of  Parliament  would  not  consent  to 
that,  but  gave  Franklin  leave  to  send  the  originals 
to  Boston;  and  on  December  2,  1772,  Franklin 
inclosed  them  in  his  batch  of  official  communi- 
cations. They  were  read  by  the  members  of  the 
Massachusetts  Assembly  with  utter  disgust;  and 
in  June  of  the  year  following,  when  the  Assembly 
met,  a  petition  was  drawn  up  requesting  the  king 
to  remove  both  Governor  Hutchinson  and  Andrew 
Oliver,  his  lieutenant  governor.  This  petition  was 


142  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

sent  to  Franklin  and  was  forwarded  by  him  to  Lord 
Dartmouth,  the  man  who  had  succeeded  Lord 
Hillsborough  as  the  minister  in  charge  of  American 
affairs. 

Meanwhile,  in  spite  of  Franklin's  instructions, 
the  letters  had  been  published  in  Boston.  Copies 
of  them  soon  found  their  way  to  London  and  were 
printed  in  most  of  the  leading  newspapers. 

Curiosity  was  at  once  aroused  as  to  how  the 
letters  had  been  secured;  and  Thomas  Whately, 
the  brother  of  William  Whately,  was  immediately 
suspected.  He  denied  all  knowledge  of  them,  and 
charged  John  Temple,  a  former  lieutenant  gover- 
nor of  New  Hampshire,  with  having  stolen  them. 
There  was  some  reason  for  this  charge.  Upon  his 
death  William  Whately  had  left  all  his  letters  and 
communications  to  his  brother  Thomas;  and  on 
several  occasions  the  latter  had  allowed  Temple  to 
go  over  them.  It  was  proved  later,  however,  that 
Temple  was  innocent,  and  knew  no  more  about 
the  letters  than  Thomas  Whately  himself. 

Enraged  at  Whately's  accusation,  Temple  sent 
him  a  challenge.  Whately  accepted  it,  agreeing 
to  fight  the  duel  without  seconds.  The  two  men 
met  at  dawn  the  next  morning,  December  n, 
1773,  m  the  RiQg  °f  Hyde  Park.  Temple  had  a 
sword  and  a  brace  of  pistols ;  Whately  had  only  a 


THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS  143 

sword.  The  former  suggested  starting  the  duel 
with  the  pistols,  and  offered  one  to  Whately.  They 
fired  at  each  other  without  any  result,  and  then 
fell  to  with  their  swords.  Temple,  who  had  some 
skill  at  fencing,  soon  discovered  that  Whately  knew 
nothing  about  the  use  of  his  weapon,  and  tried  to 
stop  the  duel  by  wounding  his  sword  arm;  but 
Whately  laid  about  him  so  wildly  that  Temple 
could  not  deliver  his  thrust.  When  he  finally  did, 
Whately  caught  the  sword  in  his  left  hand;  and 
the  blade,  instead  of  killing  him,  entered  his  left 
side,  giving  him  a  severe  but  not  a  dangerous 
wound.  Whately  muttered  that  he  was  willing  to 
stop ;  but  Temple,  who  was  very  deaf,  did  not 
hear  him  and  stabbed  him  again.  This  ended  the 
fight ;  and  Whately,  though  twice  wounded,  was 
able  to  stagger  to  a  carriage  and  be  driven  home. 
Rumors  of  the  duel  were  soon  noised  about.  Tem- 
ple was  accused  of  giving  Whately  his  second 
wound  after  the  latter  had  fallen,  and  of  continu- 
ing the  fight  after  Whately  had  asked  him  to  stop. 
Temple  defended  himself  by  publishing  a  long  de- 
scription of  the  duel  in  one  of  the  leading  news- 
papers, in  which  he  excused  his  conduct  on  the 
ground  of  his  deafness,  and  again  solemnly  denied 
the  charge  that  he  had  taken  the  letters,  or  knew 
anything  about  them. 


144  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

This  account  was  the  first  intimation  that  Frank- 
lin had  of  the  affair.  He  had  been  visiting  in  the 
country  during  the  quarrel  between  Temple  and 
Whately,  and  had  returned  to  London  only  after 
the  duel  had  been  fought.  He  immediately  wrote 
a  letter  to  the  newspapers  explaining  that  neither 
Whately  nor  Temple  had  had  anything  to  do  with 
taking  the  letters,  since  they  had  never  been  in 
either  man's  possession,  and  admitting  frankly  that 
he  himself  had  procured  them  and  sent  them  to 
Boston.  Who  had  given  them  to  him,  and  how 
they  had  been  obtained,  he  refused  to  tell ;  and  to 
this  day  the  name  of  the  member  of  Parliament 
who  turned  them  over  to  him  has  never  been 
discovered. 

He  believed  that  his  explanation  had  ended  the 
matter;  but  the  party  in  power,  who  had  come 
to  fear  him,  now  saw  a  chance  to  disgrace  him,  and 
they  made  the  most  of  it.  His  letter  had  appeared 
on  December  26,  1773.  On  January  8,  1774,  two 
weeks  later,  he  received  notice  that  the  Committee 
for  Plantation  Affairs  would,  on  the  Tuesday  fol- 
lowing, consider  the  petition  from  Massachusetts 
asking  for  the  removal  of  the  governor  and  the 
lieutenant  governor.  The  matter  had  been  put 
aside  for  so  long  that  Franklin  grew  suspicious  at 
this  sudden  revival  of  it,  and  when  he  attended 


THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS  145 

the  meeting  he  found  that  his  suspicions  were  only 
too  well  founded.  Governor  Hutchinson  and 
Oliver  had,  through  their  agent,  employed  Alex- 
ander Wedderburn,  a  grasping  and  unprincipled 
lawyer,  to  represent  them.  The  proceedings  had 
scarcely  begun  before  the  question  of  the  letters 
was  brought  up,  and  Wedderburn  stated  to  the 
Committee  that  he  proposed  to  find  out  how  the 
Massachusetts  Assembly  came  into  possession  of 
them,  and  through  whose  hands.  Realizing  the 
trap  which  had  been  set  for  him,  Franklin  asked 
that  the  matter  be  adjourned  until  he  could  engage 
a  lawyer  to  defend  his  side.  The  Committee 
granted  him  three  weeks. 

On  January  29,  1774,  the  Committee  met  again 
in  a  building  called  the  Cockpit.  The  room  where 
the  hearing  was  held  was  about  the  size  of  an  or- 
dinary parlor,  with  an  open  fireplace  at  one  end,  and 
a  long  table  running  the  length  of  the  room  at 
which  the  members  of  the  Committee  sat.  Every- 
one else  had  to  stand. 

Franklin  had  engaged  the  services  of  John  Dun- 
ning, one  of  the  leading  lawyers  of  England,  and, 
leaving  the  case  entirely  in  his  attorney's  hands, 
chose  a  position  beside  the  fireplace,  where  he 
remained  during  the  whole  meeting.  "He  stood," 
writes  one  who  was  present,  "  conspicuously  erect, 
L 


146  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

without  the  smallest  movement  of  any  part  of  his 
body.  The  muscles  of  his  face  had  been  previously 
composed,  so  as  to  afford  a  placid,  tranquil  expres- 
sion of  countenance,  and  he  did  not  suffer  the 
slightest  alteration  of  it  to  appear." 

The  room  was  crowded.  There  were  present 
no  less  than  thirty-five  members  of  the  King's 
Privy  Council,  besides  hosts  of  Americans  and 
friends  of  Franklin.  The  proceedings  were  opened 
by  the  Clerk  of  the  Committee,  who  first  read  the 
petition,  then  the  resolutions  of  the  Massachusetts 
Assembly  upon  which  the  petition  had  been  drawn, 
and  finally  the  famous  letters  themselves. 

Mr.  Dunning  spoke  briefly,  but  eloquently,  in 
favor  of  the  petition.  Then  Wedderburn  began. 
For  fifteen  minutes  he  praised  Governor  Hutch- 
inson  and  what  he  had  done  for  Massachusetts; 
then  he  turned  on  Franklin,  and  not  only  accused 
him  of  causing  all  the  trouble  between  Hutchinson 
and  the  Massachusetts  Assembly,  but  charged 
him  with  having  stolen  the  letters,  and  sending 
them  to  Boston  in  the  hope  that  he  might  be  ap- 
pointed governor  in  Hutchinson's  place.  These 
false  and  outrageous  statements  took  up  the 
greater  part  of  his  speech,  and  were  greeted  by 
many  members  of  the  Committee  with  bursts 
of  laughter  and  delight. 


THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS  147 

When  Wedderburn  had  finished,  Mr.  Dunning 
replied  to  him,  but  he  had  been  standing  three 
hours  and  was  quite  worn  out;  his  voice  was 
hardly  more  than  a  whisper.  Besides,  nothing 
that  he  could  say  would  have  helped.  The  Com- 
mittee had  probably  decided  against  the  petition 
before  the  meeting;  and  when  they  issued  their 
report  they  laid  great  stress  upon  the  fact  that  the 
letters  had  been  "surreptitiously  obtained,"  and 
contained  nothing  unworthy  of  the  men  who  had 
written  them.  They  refused  absolutely  to  remove 
either  Hutchinson  or  Oliver,  or  to  grant  any  other 
of  the  Assembly's  requests.  Smarting  under  Wed- 
derburn's  insults,  but  with  his  conscience  clear 
and  his  face  calm,  Franklin  left  the  room  and 
returned  to  his  lodgings.  This  was  on  Saturday; 
on  the  following  Monday  he  received  official  notice 
that  he  was  dismissed  as  deputy  postmaster-gen- 
eral of  America.  No  reasons  were  given,  but  he 
knew  only  too  well  that  the  government  had  taken 
this  means  of  showing  him  that  its  triumph  was 
complete. 

Wedderburn  may  have  succeeded  in  injuring 
him  in  the  eyes  of  the  English,  but  he  had  made 
him  a  hero  and  a  martyr  in  the  eyes  of  the  colonists ; 
and  when  the  news  reached  Philadelphia  the  ef- 
figies of  Hutchinson  and  Wedderburn  were  carried 


148  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

by  a  hooting  mob  through  the  streets  and  burnt, 
while  everywhere  people  pledged  themselves  to 
send  their  letters  by  private  messengers  and  make 
no  more  use  of  the  public  mails. 

There  remained  little  for  Franklin  to  do  in 
London.  He  was  a  discredited  man  with  those 
in  power;  some  of  the  hostile  newspapers  even 
demanded  his  arrest.  His  own  particular  friends, 
however,  stood  by  him  faithfully;  and  he  went 
about  in  their  society  and  attended  the  meetings 
of  the  Royal  Society  and  his  other  clubs  very 
much  as  he  had  done  before.  Realizing  that  he 
could  be  of  no  more  use  to  the  colonies,  he  once 
more  set  about  making  his  preparations  to  return 
home,  and  was  almost  ready  to  sail  when  the  news 
of  the  gathering  of  the  first  American  Congress 
reached  London.  This  Congress  was  composed  of 
men  from  all  the  thirteen  colonies,  and  had  been 
formed  to  protest  against  the  stand  of  the  English 
government.  Franklin's  friends  in  England  and 
America  advised  him  to  put  off  his  departure  until 
Congress  had  met,  since  he  might  be  able  to  aid 
them  in  London.  He  agreed,  risking  the  very 
real  danger  of  arrest  rather  than  lose  a  last  chance 
to  heal  the  breach  between  the  two  countries ;  but 
his  sacrifice  was  useless.  The  petition  which 
Congress  finally  sent  was  presented  by  him  and 


THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS  149 

two  other  colonial  agents,  and  was  refused  without 
a  hearing. 

While  he  was  waiting  for  news  of  the  fate  of  the 
petition,  several  men  of  prominence  in  London, 
among  whom  were  Lord  Howe  and  a  member  of 
Parliament  named  David  Barclay,  approached 
him  secretly  on  the  subject  of  effecting  a  reconcil- 
iation between  the  colonies  and  England,  and  sug- 
gested that  Franklin  should  draw  up  a  list  of  propo- 
sitions to  which  the  colonists  would  agree.  He 
was  assured  that  the  party  in  power  was  disposed 
to  listen  to  any  reasonable  demands. 

Franklin  drew  up  the  list,  but  was  told  that  the 
government  would  not  consent  to  some  of  its 
provisions.  He  drew  up  another,  and  still  another, 
finally  pledging  himself  to  pay  out  of  his  own 
pocket  for  the  tea  destroyed  at  the  "Boston  Tea 
Party"  ;  but  objections  were  raised  to  all  of  them, 
and  at  last,  when  the  party  in  power  found  that  it 
could  not  make  him  back  down  in  his  demands,  it 
tried  to  bribe  him  by  offering  him  a  "proper  con- 
sideration" for  his  services,  and  giving  him  a 
solemn  promise  of  "subsequent  rewards."  He 
refused  the  offer  indignantly,  and  the  secret 
negotiations  between  him  and  the  government 
came  to  an  end. 

The  presentation  of  the  petition  from  Congress 


150  BENJAMIN   FRANKLIN 

was  Franklin's  last  official  act  in  England.  Shortly 
after  it  had  been  dismissed,  he  received  the  sad 
news  of  his  wife's  death  in  Philadelphia;  and  a 
month  or  so  later,  still  firm  in  his  belief  that  his 
arrest  had  been  ordered,  he  slipped  quietly  out  of 
London  and  proceeded  cautiously  to  Portsmouth, 
where,  on  March  21,  1775,  he  set  sail  for  home. 

An  incident  which  happened  during  his  last  days 
in  England  serves  to  show  how  deeply  he  felt  for 
the  colonies  in  their  troubles,  and  how  eager  he  was 
to  use  every  means  possible  to  put  them  before  the 
English  in  their  right  light. 

While  visiting  at  a  nobleman's  house  the  talk 
turned  to  the  subject  of  fables.  Some  one  re- 
marked that  the  day  of  fables  was  past,  and  that 
no  one  could  find  an  animal,  bird,  or  fish,  about 
which  he  could  write  a  fable  with  any  success. 
Every  one  agreed  except  Franklin,  who  had  re- 
mained silent  during  the  discussion.  One  of  those 
present  asked  his  opinion.  He  replied  that  he 
believed  the  subject  was  inexhaustible. 

"Can  you  think  of  one  now?"  asked  the  gentle- 
man. 

Franklin  answered  that  he  could.  "If  your 
Lordship  will  give  me  a  pen,  ink,  and  paper,"  he 
continued,  "I  believe  I  can  furnish  you  with  one 
in  a  few  minutes." 


THE  HUTCHINSON  LETTERS  151 

The  articles  were  brought.  He  retired  to  a 
corner  of  the  room  and  began  to  write.  In  a  very 
short  time  he  returned  and  handed  the  paper  to 
one  of  the  noblemen.  This  is  what  he  had  written : 

"  Once  upon  a  time,  an  eagle  scaling  round  a  farmer's 
barn,  and  espying  a  hare,  darted  down  upon  him  like  a 
sunbeam,  seized  him  in  his  claws,  and  remounted  with  him 
in  the  air.  He  soon  found  that  he  had  a  creature  of  more 
courage  and  strength  than  a  hare,  for  which,  notwithstand- 
ing the  keenness  of  his  eyesight,  he  had  mistaken  a  cat. 
The  snarling  and  scrambling  of  the  prey  was  very  inconven- 
ient, and,  what  was  worse,  she  had  disengaged  herself  from 
his  talons,  grasped  his  body  with  her  four  limbs,  so  as  to 
stop  his  breath,  and  seized  fast  hold  of  his  throat  with  her 
teeth.  '  Pray,'  said  the  eagle,  '  let  go  your  hold  and  I  will 
release  you.'  '  Very  fine,'  said  the  cat,  '  I  have  no  fancy  to 
fall  from  this  height  and  be  crushed  to  death.  You  have 
taken  me  up,  and  you  shall  stoop  and  let  me  down.'  The 
eagle  thought  it  necessary  to  stoop  accordingly." 

The  eagle,  of  course,  represented  England,  the 
cat,  the  colonies;  and  the  fable  described  so 
correctly  the  situation  between  the  two  countries, 
that  even  those  who  were  against  him  had  to  admit 
its  justice,  and  joined  in  congratulating  Franklin 
heartily  on  his  ingenious  performance. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

FRANKLIN  THE  PATRIOT 

ON  May  5,  1775,  the  vessel  in  which  Franklin 
had  crossed  the  ocean  anchored  off  Philadelphia. 
He  landed  in  the  evening,  and  went  at  once  to  the 
house  in  Market  Street  which  his  wife  had  had 
built  for  him,  but  which  he  had  never  seen.  Here 
he  found  his  daughter,  Sarah  Bache,  and  her 
husband,  Richard  Bache,  awaiting  him. 

His  arrival  was  announced  in  all  the  leading 
newspapers.  One  of  them,  the  Pennsylvania 
Packet,  made  it  the  occasion  for  addressing  to 
Franklin  the  following  flattering  lines : 

"  Welcome  !  once  more 

To  these  fair  western  plains  —  thy  native  shore. 
Here  live  beloved,  and  leave  the  tools  at  home 
To  run  their  length,  and  finish  out  their  doom. 
Here  lend  thine  aid  to  quench  their  brutal  fires, 
Or  fan  the  flame  which  Liberty  inspires, 
Or  fix  the  grand  conductor  that  shall  guide 
The  tempest  back  and  'lectrify  their  pride. 
Rewarding  Heaven  will  bless  thy  cares  at  last, 
And  future  glories  glorify  the  past." 
152 


FRANKLIN  THE  PATRIOT  153 

Not  only  were  the  verses  overflowing  with  his 
praise,  but  the  title  also  lauded  him  as  "  the  friend 
of  his  country  and  of  mankind." 

Probably  the  first  news  that  he  heard  was  that 
of  the  battles  of  Lexington  and  Concord,  which 
had  been  fought  only  two  weeks  before.  These 
battles  marked  the  real  beginning  of  the  Revolu- 
tion ;  and  everywhere,  from  New  Hampshire  to 
Georgia,  the  colonies  were  calling  the  people  to 
arms. 

Franklin  had  arrived  at  an  opportune  moment, 
and  was  immediately  drawn  into  the  thick  of 
affairs.  On  the  morning  following  his  return, 
the  Pennsylvania  Assembly  unanimously  resolved 
that  he  be  "added  to  the  deputies  appointed  by 
this  House  on  the  part  of  Pennsylvania,  to  attend 
the  Continental  Congress  expected  to  meet  on  the 
loth  instant  in  this  city." 

Already  the  delegates  from  the  different  colonies 
were  beginning  to  pour  in  for  the  meeting.  The 
members  from  South  Carolina  arrived  first,  landing 
from  the  ship  which  had  brought  them  from 
Charleston.  The  day  after,  more  than  five  hun- 
dred citizens  went  out  to  meet  the  delegates  from 
North  Carolina,  Virginia,  Maryland,  and  Dela- 
ware, among  whom  were  Patrick  Henry  and 
George  Washington,  and  escorted  them  back  to 


154  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

the  city;  and  the  next  day  the  men  representing 
New  Jersey,  New  York,  and  New  England  rode 
into  Philadelphia  from  the  north.  When  the  Con- 
gress finally  met,  almost  all  of  the  sixty-three 
members  were  present. 

Franklin's  work  in  this  Congress  was  very  much 
like  the  work  he  had  done  when  he  was  a  member 
of  the  Assembly.  He  made  few  speeches,  and  drew 
up  virtually  none  of  the  important  acts  and  res- 
olutions ;  but  in  this  one  session  he  served  on  no 
less  than  ten  committees,  and  before  anything 
important  was  decided  upon,  his  counsel  was  al- 
ways sought  and  his  advice  taken.  He  was  the 
one  man  in  whose  prudence  and  common  sense 
every  one  trusted.  Indeed,  at  this  time,  before 
Washington,  Jefferson,  and  the  other  famous 
patriots  and  statesmen  had  come  to  the  front, 
he  was  the  greatest  and  best-beloved  man  in  all 
America;  and,  curiously  enough,  was  even  called 
the  "Father  of  his  Country,"  a  title  by  which 
Washington  is  now  universally  known. 

One  of  the  first  committees  upon  which  Franklin 
served  had  been  appointed  to  devise  a  postal 
system.  The  plan  which  he  suggested  was  ap- 
proved by  Congress,  and  he  was  unanimously 
elected  postmaster-general  of  the  colonies.  This 
office  carried  more  power  with  it,  and  was  of 


FRANKLIN  THE  PATRIOT  155 

greater  importance,  than  his  old  position  under 
the  English  government;  and  it  was  no  doubt 
a  source  of  great  satisfaction  to  him  to  realize 
that  it  had  been  given  him  only  a  year  and  a  half 
after  his  uncalled-for  dismissal. 

The  chiefs  of  the  post  office  were  always  allowed 
to  send  their  letters  free  of  charge,  and  instead  of 
using  stamps  they  wrote  their  names  on  the  en- 
velopes. When  acting  for  the  English  govern- 
ment Franklin  had  inscribed  his  letters,  "Free, 
B.  Franklin."  Now,  with  his  usual  keen  sense 
of  humor,  he  changed  the  position  of  the  words, 
and  wrote  instead  "B  free  Franklin." 

Besides  his  numerous  duties  in  Congress,  he 
was  also  a  member  of  the  Pennsylvania  Assembly, 
and  chairman  of  the  Pennsylvania  Committee  of 
Safety.  Upon  this  committee  rested  the  task  of 
calling  out  and  drilling  the  troops,  providing 
ammunition  and  supplies,  and  generally  preparing 
the  province  for  defense.  So  thoroughly  did 
Franklin  carry  out  his  work,  that  before  the  end 
of  the  year  the  banks  of  the  Delaware  River  bris- 
tled with  forts  and  batteries,  while  a  fleet  of  small 
gunboats,  propelled  by  oars,  guarded  the  ap- 
proaches of  the  city  day  and  night. 

The  amount  of  work  which  he  accomplished  in 
those  hot  months  is  almost  incredible.  "In  the 


156  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

morning  at  six,"  he  wrote  to  Dr.  Priestley,  an 
English  friend,  "I  am  at  the  Committee  of  Safety. 
.  .  .  which  committee  holds  till  near  nine,  when  I 
am  at  the  Congress,  and  that  sits  till  four  in  the 
afternoon."  After  that  there  were  countless  con- 
sultations, committee  meetings,  and  discussions 
of  all  sorts  until  bedtime.  Yet  in  spite  of  these 
labors  and  in  spite  of  his  age,  —  he  was  now  sixty- 
nine,  —  he  appears  to  have  kept  in  excellent  health 
and  spirits;  and  when  on  August  i,  Congress  ad- 
journed for  a  few  weeks,  instead  of  taking  a  rest, 
he  paid  a  visit  to  his  son,  William,  who  was  still 
governor  of  New  Jersey,  and  lived  in  Perth  Amboy, 
in  that  province. 

As  it  happened,  this  was  the  last  time  that 
Franklin  was  ever  to  visit  his  son.  William 
Franklin  was  a  strong  supporter  of  the  English,  and 
during  the  few  days  that  his  father  spent  with  him, 
their  discussions  were  many  and  heated.  They 
parted  friends,  but  soon  after  William  Franklin 
came  out  publicly  in  favor  of  the  king,  and  became 
very  active  in  the  party  opposing  the  colonists. 
From  that  time  forth  all  relations  between  him  and 
his  father  were  broken  off. 

Congress  met  again  on  September  13.  Bad 
news  awaited  the  members.  Washington,  who  had 
been  placed  in  command  of  the  little  American 


FRANKLIN  THE  PATRIOT  157 

army  in  New  England,  sent  word  that  he  had 
neither  clothing,  money,  nor  supplies  of  any  kind, 
and  that  his  men  were  beginning  to  leave  him. 
Franklin,  Thomas  Lynch  of  South  Carolina,  and 
Benjamin  Harrison  of  Virginia,  all  members  of 
Congress,  were  appointed  by  that  body  to  go  to 
Cambridge,  where  Washington  then  was,  and  try 
to  devise  some  plan  for  taking  care  of  the  army. 
The  three  commissioners  left  Philadelphia  on 
October  4,  and  arrived  in  Cambridge  thirteen 
days  later.  Before  starting  out  Franklin  resigned 
from  both  the  Assembly  and  the  Committee  of 
Safety,  giving  his  advanced  age  as  the  reason. 
He  also  wrote  along  letter  to  Dr.  Priestley,  in  which, 
in  a  humorous  but  very  striking  way,  he  showed 
how  little  the  English  had  accomplished  toward 
subduing  the  Americans.  "Britain,"  he  said,  "at 
the  expense  of  three  millions,  has  killed  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  Yankees  this  campaign,  which  is 
twenty  thousand  pounds  a  head ;  and  at  Bunker's 
Hill  she  gained  a  mile  of  ground,  half  of  which  she 
lost  again  by  our  taking  post  on  Ploughed  Hill. 
During  the  same  time  sixty  thousand  children  have 
been  born  in  America.  From  these  data  Dr. 
Price's  mathematical  head  will  easily  calculate 
the  time  and  expense  necessary  to  kill  us  all,  and 
conquer  our  whole  territory." 


158  BENJAMIN   FRANKLIN 

The  commissioners  met  Washington  and  his 
officers,  and  sat  for  four  days,  during  which  time 
the  plans  for  the  establishment  and  support  of 
the  army  were  successfully  drawn  up  and  com- 
pleted. As  always,  Franklin  took  a  leading  part 
in  the  arrangements;  and  many  of  the  most 
valuable  ideas  were  suggested  by  him.  So,  in  a 
measure,  he  shared  in  the  honor  of  founding  the 
first  regular  army  in  the  United  States. 

After  remaining  a  few  days  in  the  company  of 
Washington,  the  commissioners  journeyed  back  to 
Philadelphia,  having  been  gone  only  six  weeks. 

Again  bad  news  awaited  them.  A  royal  proc- 
lamation had  been  issued  in  England  declaring 
that  the  colonies  were  in  a  state  of  rebellion ;  and 
a  short  time  after  its  appearance  Parliament  had 
passed  a  law  called  the  Prohibitory  Act,  which 
sanctioned  the  killing  of  the  Americans,  the  de- 
struction of  their  property,  and  all  the  other  acts 
of  violence  which  had  been  committed  against 
them  both  on  sea  and  land.  Taken  together, 
these  acts  amounted  to  a  declaration  of  war. 
From  the  instant  he  heard  of  them,  Franklin 
refused  to  recognize  the  English  government,  and 
was  heart  and  soul  in  favor  of  independence  for 
the  colonies.  Toward  the  end  of  the  earlier  session 
of  Congress,  he  had  submitted  a  plan  for  the  union 


FRANKLIN  THE  PATRIOT  159 

of  the  states;  but  the  time  was  not  then  ripe  for 
so  bold  a  measure,  and  nothing  had  come  of  it. 
Now  he  advanced  it  again,  and  labored  for  it 
incessantly,  winning  over  many  of  the  more 
lukewarm  members  by  his  persistent  efforts. 

It  was  generally  realized  that  the  Americans, 
unaided,  would  never  be  able  to  carry  on  a  success- 
ful war  against  England.  France  and  Spain  were 
known  to  be  friendly  to  the  colonies;  and  late  in 
November  of  this  year,  1775,  a  committee,  of  which 
Franklin  was  one,  was  appointed  by  Congress  to 
send  agents  to  foreign  countries  and  learn  their 
attitudes  toward  the  Americans.  This  committee 
was  called  the  Secret  Committee ;  and  on  account 
of  his  long  residence  abroad,  and  the  many  friends 
he  had  made  there,  Franklin  took  charge  of  the 
greater  part  of  the  work. 

He  wrote  letters  to  Mr.  Dumas,  an  acquaintance 
who  resided  in  Holland ;  to  Arthur  Lee,  his  former 
assistant  as  agent  for  Massachusetts,  who  was  still 
living  in  London ;  and  to  Don  Gabriel  de  Bourbon, 
a  Spanish  prince,  with  whom  he  had  once  carried 
on  an  extensive  correspondence  on  literary  matters, 
—  asking  them  all  to  discover,  if  possible,  how  the 
foreign  governments  felt  toward  this  country. 
These  letters  were  given  to  Thomas  Story,  a  special 
messenger,  who  was  employed  to  take  them  to 


160  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

their  destination,  receive  the  reports  of  the  gentle- 
men to  whom  they  were  addressed,  and  return  as 
speedily  as  he  could  with  their  replies.  A  short 
time  after  Monsieur  Penet,  a  French  merchant 
who  was  on  his  way  home,  was  intrusted  by  the 
committee  with  a  large  order  for  arms,  ammuni- 
tion, and  clothing,  which  he  was  to  have  filled  in 
France  and  shipped  back  to  America.  He  also 
took  with  him  a  batch  of  letters  from  Franklin 
to  some  of  his  French  friends,  among  whom  was 
Dr.  Dubourg,  the  translator  of  Franklin's  works, 
and  a  man  of  prominence  in  Paris. 

Not  satisfied  with  these  first  efforts,  the  Secret 
Committee  soon  adopted  bolder  methods,  and 
early  in  1776  began  making  preparations  for  send- 
ing a  special  agent  to  France,  armed  with  authority 
to  deal  directly  with  the  French  government. 
The  man  selected  to  go  was  Silas  Deane,  a  man 
who  knew  a  great  deal  about  American  affairs. 
Before  he  left  Franklin  gave  him  a  list  of  instruc- 
tions, telling  him  exactly  how  to  proceed  in  his 
negotiations.  His  visit  to  France  was  to  be  kept 
an  absolute  secret ;  and  to  insure  his  dispatches  to 
Congress  from  being  read,  he  was  given  a  quantity 
of  invisible  ink  and  specially  prepared  paper,  with 
orders  to  write  ordinary  business  letters  signed 
"Timothy  Jones"  on  one  half  of  the  sheet,  while 


FRANKLIN  THE  PATRIOT  161 

he  reserved  the  remainder  for  his  real  communica- 
tion, written  in  the  invisible  ink.  Silas  Deane 
sailed  in  April  and  arrived  in  France  in  June,  long 
before  any  news  had  been  heard  from  Story. 

It  was  while  the  preparations  for  Deane's  depar- 
ture were  in  progress  that  sad  tidings  came  of  the 
failure  of  the  Continental  Army  to  capture  Quebec. 
The  attempt  had  been  made  on  December  31, 
1775.  General  Montgomery  had  been  killed  and 
General  Benedict  Arnold  had  been  wounded. 

Remembering  what  good  results  had  come  from 
sending  a  committee  to  Cambridge,  Congress 
resolved  to  pursue  the  same  methods,  and  ap- 
pointed Franklin  and  two  Maryland  members, 
Samuel  Chase  and  Charles  Carroll,  as  commis- 
sioners, with  instructions  to  proceed  at  once  to 
Montreal,  meet  Benedict  Arnold,  and  do  every- 
thing that  was  possible  to  insure  the  safety  of  the 
army  and  the  success  of  the  American  cause. 
They  were  even  authorized  to  treat  with  Canada 
and  try  to  persuade  the  people  to  join  the  colonies 
in  their  war  for  independence. 

It  was  late  in  March,  1776,  when  the  three  com- 
missioners left  Philadelphia,  and,  accompanied  by 
John  Carroll,  Charles  Carroll's  brother,  set  out  on 
their  long  and  fatiguing  journey  to  the  north. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

FRANKLIN  THE  COMMISSIONER 

AFTER  a  journey  of  two  days  the  commissioners 
reached  New  York.  Here  they  went  on  board  a 
sloop  which  had  been  awaiting  them,  and  started 
up  the  Hudson  River  for  Albany.  It  took  them  five 
days  to  make  the  trip.  They  spent  two  days  in 
Albany,  discussing  affairs  with  General  Schuyler 
and  General  Thomas,  who  had  charge  of  the  town, 
and  then,  escorted  by  two  officers,  traveled  in  a 
large  country  wagon  to  Saratoga,  thirty-two  miles 
away.  The  ride  was  a  very  tiresome  one,  and  al- 
most more  than  the  aged  Franklin  could  stand. 

"At  Saratoga,"  he  wrote  home,  "I  begin  to  apprehend 
that]  I  have  undertaken  a  fatigue  which,  at  my  time  of  life, 
may  prove  too  much  for  me;  so  I  sit  down  to  write  to  a 
few  friends  by  way  of  farewell." 

A  week's  rest,  however,  put  him  on  his  feet 
again,  and  the  commissioners  moved  on  toward 
the  southern  end  of  Lake  George.  Snow  still 
covered  the  ground,  and  the  lake  was  filled  with 
broken  ice;  but  in  spite  of  the  difficulties  con- 

162 


FRANKLIN  THE  COMMISSIONER          163 

fronting  them,  they  determined  to  push  on  as 
quickly  as  possible.  A  batteau,  or  large  scow, 
about  thirty-five  feet  long,  had  been  prepared  for 
them.  In  this  crude  boat  they  embarked,  making 
the  journey  up  Lake  George  in  thirty-six  hours. 
At  the  northern  end  of  the  lake  they  were  met  by 
five  yoke  of  oxen,  which  dragged  the  batteau  on 
wheels  across  the  strip  of  land  separating  Lake 
George  from  Lake  Champlain. 

Northward  through  Lake  Champlain  they  sailed, 
arriving  at  the  end  of  it  in  three  days  and 
a  half.  Here  carriages  were  awaiting  them  which 
took  them  to  Montreal. 

"We  were  received,"  says  John  Carroll,  "by  General 
Arnold,  and  a  great  body  of  officers  and  gentry,  and  saluted 
by  the  firing  of  cannon  and  other  military  honors.  Being 
conducted  to  the  General's  house,  we  were  served  with  a 
glass  of  wine;  while  people  were  crowding  in  to  pay  their 
compliments ;  which  ceremony  being  over,  we  were  shown 
into  another  apartment,  and,  unexpectedly,  met  in  it  a 
large  number  of  ladies,  most  of  them  French.  After  drink- 
ing tea,  and  sitting  some  time,  we  went  to  an  elegant  supper, 
which  was  followed  with  the  singing  of  the  ladies,  which 
proved  very  agreeable,  and  would  have  been  more  so  if  we 
had  not  been  so  fatigued  with  our  journey." 

The  commissioners,  however,  soon  learned  that 
Canada  would  not  join  the  colonies;  even  their 
efforts  to  borrow  money  for  the  cause  came  to 


1 64  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

naught.  The  Canadians  had  expected  that  the 
commissioners  would  bring  money  with  them  to 
pay  for  the  quartering  and  provisioning  of  the 
army;  and  when  they  discovered  that  this  was 
not  the  case,  they  became  indifferent  and  refused 
to  aid  the  Americans  in  any  way.  The  commis- 
sioners reported  the  state  of  affairs  to  Congress; 
and  advised  that  body  that  if  money  could  not  be 
raised  to  support  the  army  in  Canada,  so  that  it 
would  be  respected  instead  of  hated,  the  only 
thing  to  do  was  to  withdraw  it  across  the  border 
into  the  colony  of  New  York. 

The  report  had  scarcely  been  dispatched  when  a 
messenger  arrived  with  the  news  that  an  English 
fleet  had  landed  troops  at  Quebec,  and  put  to  rout 
the  remnant  of  the  American  army  stationed  there. 
A  hurried  council  of  war  was  called,  at  which  the 
commissioners  decided  not  to  wait  for  instructions 
from  Congress,  but  to  withdraw  from  Canada  at 
once  what  remained  of  the  army. 

The  following  day  Franklin  and  John  Carroll 
left  for  the  south  to  report  to  Congress,  while  the 
other  two  commissioners  remained  behind  to 
oversee  the  transportation  of  the  troops  from 
Canada  to  the  northern  end  of  Lake  Champlain. 

Franklin  arrived  in  Philadelphia  in  the  early 
part  of  June.  He  had  done  everything  in  his 


FRANKLIN  THE  COMMISSIONER          165 

power  to  win  Canada  over  to  the  American  side, 
and  though  he  had  failed,  it  was  through  no  fault 
of  his,  but  by  reason  of  circumstances  over  which 
he  had  no  control,  and  for  which  he  was  in  no  way 
responsible. 

He  found  a  new  state  of  affairs  awaiting  him  in 
Pennsylvania.  Congress  had  passed  a  law  dis- 
solving all  governing  bodies  whose  authority  came 
from  the  king.  The  Assembly,  coming  under 
this  law,  had  ceased  to  exist,  and  delegates  had  been 
elected  to  confer  together  and  decide  upon  the 
proper  measures  to  be  taken  to  form  a  new  state 
government.  Out  of  the  twenty-five  delegates 
chosen  from  Philadelphia  Franklin  was  one.  The 
conference  met  on  June  18,  and  in  five  days' 
time  had  drawn  up  a  plan  for  a  convention  of  citi- 
zens to  be  elected  by  the  people,  to  consist  of 
eight  members  from  Philadelphia,  and  eight  from 
each  county.  This  convention  was  to  agree 
upon  a  constitution  under  which  Pennsylvania 
would  be  governed.  The  election  was  held;  and 
Franklin  was  not  only  elected  again,  but,  when 
the  convention  met  on  July  16,  he  was  unani- 
mously chosen  to  act  as  president  of  the  meeting. 

In  the  meanwhile,  however,  a  great  event  had 
taken  place  in  Congress.  During  Franklin's  ab- 
sence in  Canada  the  question  of  formally  announcing 


166  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

the  independence  of  the  colonies  had  been  debated 
with  great  spirit ;  and  now  nearly  all  of  the  mem- 
bers were  in  favor  of  it.  A  few  days  after  his 
return,  Congress  elected  by  ballot  a  committee  of 
five  to  draw  up  a  proper  declaration.  Franklin 
was  chosen  a  member  of  it,  the  other  four  being 
Robert  Livingston,  Roger  Sherman,  John  Adams, 
and  Thomas  Jefferson. 

In  the  actual  drafting  of  the  famous  Declaration 
of  Independence,  Franklin  had  no  share.  Jefferson 
wrote  it,  and  afterward  read  it  to  Franklin  and 
Adams  for  their  approval.  Neither  made  any 
corrections,  and  it  was  submitted  to  Congress 
virtually  as  Jefferson  had  drawn  it. 

Here  it  came  in  for  a  great  deal  of  criticism,  and 
parts  of  it  were  cut  out  or  revised.  Provoked  at 
the  way  in  which  his  work  was  being  mutilated, 
Jefferson  expressed  his  annoyance  to  Franklin, 
who  was  sitting  beside  him.  Franklin  sympathized 
with  him,  and  told  him  that,  whenever  possible, 
he  avoided  drawing  papers  which  were  to  be  re- 
viewed by  a  public  body. 

"I  took  my  lesson,"  he  continued,  "from  an  incident 
which  I  will  relate  to  you.  When  I  was  a  journeyman 
printer,  one  of  my  companions,  an  apprenticed  hatter,  having 
served  out  his  time,  was  about  to  open  shop  for  himself. 
His  first  concern  was  to  have  a  handsome  signboard, 


FRANKLIN  TH$  COMMISSIONER          167 

with  a  proper  inscription.  He  composed  it  in  these  words : 
John  Thompson,  Hatter,  makes  and  sell  Hats  for  ready  money, 
with  a  figure  of  a  hat  subjoined.  But  he  thought  he  would 
submit  it  to  his  friends  for  their  amendments.  The  first 
he  showed  it  to  thought  the  word  hatter  tautologous,  be- 
cause followed  by  the  words,  makes  hats,  which  showed 
he  was  a  hatter.  It  was  struck  out.  The  next  observed 
that  the  word  makes  might  as  well  be  omitted,  because  his 
customers  would  not  care  who  made  the  hats  so  long  as 
they  were  good.  .  .  .  He  struck  it  out.  A  third  said  he 
thought  the  words  for  ready  money  were  useless,  as  it  was 
not  the  custom  of  the  place  to  sell  on  credit.  .  .  .  They 
were  parted  with ;  and  the  inscription  now  stood :  John 
Thompson  sells  hats.  'Sells  hats?'  says  his  next  friend; 
'why,  nobody  will  expect  you  to  give  them  away.  What, 
then,  is  the  use  of  that  word?'  It  was  stricken  out,  and 
hats  followed,  as  there  was  one  painted  on  the  board.  So 
his  inscription  was  reduced  ultimately  to  John  Thompson, 
with  the  figure  of  a  hat  subjoined." 

The  Declaration,  with  its  corrections,  was  finally 
approved  by  Congress.  When  the  time  came  to 
sign  the  document,  John  Hancock,  one  of  the  dele- 
gates from  Massachusetts,  declared  that  it  was  now 
too  late  to  pull  different  ways,  and  that  the  mem- 
bers must  all  hang  together. 

"Yes,"  said  Franklin  quickly,  "we  must,  indeed, 
all  hang  together,  or,  most  assuredly,  we  shall  all 
hang  separately!" 

Franklin's  work  in  connection  with  the  great 


168  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

document  was  not  of  the  sort  to  attract  much  public 
attention.  He  had  discussed  it  with  his  friends, 
debated  it  with  members  of  Congress,  fought  for  it 
quietly  but  courageously  for  months ;  and  on  that 
memorable  Fourth  of  July,  1776,  when  it  was  read 
to  the  assembled  citizens  for  the  first  time,  there 
was  no  one  in  all  that  throng  who  heard  it  with  a 
deeper  thrill  and  a  greater  sense  of  gratitude  than 
Benjamin  Franklin. 

Congress  employed  the  remainder  of  that  summer 
in  deciding  upon  the  terms  for  the  union  of  the 
newly-founded  states.  Franklin  labored  hard  over 
the  matter,  and  many  of  his  suggestions  were 
embodied  in  the  final  plan.  At  the  same  time  he 
was  presiding  over  the  Pennsylvania  Convention, 
and  though  his  work  in  Congress  kept  him  away 
from  many  of  the  sittings,  he  was  on  hand  when 
most  of  the  important  debates  took  place.  He  was 
also  a  member  of  the  committee  appointed  to  de- 
vise a  seal  for  the  United  States.  Jefferson  and 
John  Adams  were  the  other  two  members.  The 
seal  which  they  finally  suggested,  however,  was  of 
elaborate  design,  and  was  not  adopted  by  Congress. 

The  days  immediately  following  the  reading  of 
the  Declaration  of  Independence  were  full  of  stir 
and  excitement.  The  king's  arms  were  removed 
from  shops,  taverns,  and  government  buildings. 


FRANKLIN  THE  COMMISSIONER          169 

The  ones  in  the  State  House  were  pulled  down  be- 
fore a  great  crowd  of  spectators,  laid  upon  a  bon- 
fire of  tar  barrels,  and,  with  great  solemnity,  burnt. 
A  steady  stream  of  troops  passed  through  the  city 
on  their  way  to  New  Brunswick,  in  New  Jersey, 
the  rendezvous  of  the  army.  Boatloads  of  soldiers 
sailed  up  the  Delaware  River  toward  Trenton  and 
other  points  north.  Scarcely  a  day  passed  without 
some  messenger  arriving  with  news  from  the  front. 
It  was  toward  the  middle  of  July  that  Congress 
received  the  first  tidings  of  the  arrival  of  Lord 
Howe  at  Sandy  Hook,  with  a  fleet  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty  vessels.  This  was  the  same  Lord 
Howe  with  whom  Franklin  had  entered  into 
negotiations  in  London.  His  first  act  was  to  send 
on  shore  a  declaration  to  all  the  royal  governors, 
announcing  that  he  had  been  authorized  to  grant 
pardons,  providing  the  colonies  would  give  up  the 
independent  stand  they  had  taken.  The  messen- 
ger who  bore  this  declaration  to  Congress  bore  also 
a  personal  letter  to  Franklin,  in  which  Lord  Howe 
asked  Franklin's  assistance  in  preserving  peace 
between  America  and  England.  Franklin  read 
the  letter  to  Congress.  The  members  instructed 
him  to  answer  it.  He  did  so,  stating  that  if  Lord 
Howe  were  ready  to  treat  with  the  United  States 
as  a  sovereign  country,  it  might  not  be  too  late  to 


170  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

come  to  an  understanding;  but  that  the  Amer- 
icans would  never  again  submit  to  being  governed 
by  England. 

This  letter  was  delivered  to  Lord  Howe  on  board 
his  flagship  in  New  York  Harbor;  and  three 
weeks  later  he  wrote  once  more  to  Franklin, 
assuring  him  of  his  friendship  and  regretting  that 
he  could  not  count  on  Franklin's  aid.  To  this 
letter  Franklin  returned  no  answer. 

A  few  weeks  later  Lord  Howe  paroled  General 
Sullivan,  who  had  been  taken  prisoner,  and  sent 
him  to  Congress  with  a  message  that  he  would  like 
to  confer  with  some  of  the  members.  He  gave  his 
solemn  promise  that  he  would  regard  them  as  pri- 
vate gentlemen,  and  meet  them  at  any  place  they 
might  appoint. 

After  a  three  days'  debate  it  was  finally  decided 
to  send  Franklin,  Edward  Rutledge,  and  John 
Adams  as  a  committee  to  learn  what  sort  of  terms 
Lord  Howe  had  to  propose.  Franklin  wrote  to 
Lord  Howe  suggesting  either  "the  governor's 
house  at  Amboy,  or  the  house  on  Staten  Island, 
opposite  Amboy,"  as  the  place  for  the  meeting. 
Lord  Howe  chose  the  house  on  Staten  Island. 

The  committee  were  two  days  making  the  jour- 
ney to  Amboy.  The  roads  were  crowded  with 
troops,  all  marching  to  join  Washington  and  aid 


FRANKLIN  THE  COMMISSIONER          171 

in  the  defense  of  New  York.  It  was  difficult  for 
the  three  men  to  get  food  and  lodging  at  the  tav- 
erns along  the  route.  At  New  Brunswick,  where 
they  spent  the  second  night,  the  inn  at  which  they 
stopped  was  so  full  that  Adams  and  Franklin  had 
to  sleep  in  the  same  bed.  The  room  was  only  a 
little  larger  than  the  bed,  and  had  only  one  small 
window.  Adams  closed  it. 

"Oh!"  said  Franklin,  "don't  shut  the  window. 
We  shall  be  suffocated." 

Adams  said  that  he  was  afraid  of  the  night 
air. 

"The  air  within  the  room,"  Franklin  answered, 
"will  soon  be  worse  than  that  without  doors. 
Come,  open  the  window  and  come  to  bed,  and  I 
will  convince  you.  I  believe  you  are  not  ac- 
quainted with  my  theory  of  colds." 

Adams,  obeying,  got  into  bed;  and  Franklin 
began  a  long  discourse  on  air,  cold,  and  breathing, 
which  proved  so  soothing  that  Adams  fell  asleep 
in  the  midst  of  it.  Franklin  also  was  asleep  long 
before  he  had  exhausted  his  subject. 

The  next  day  they  arrived  at  Amboy  opposite 
Staten  Island.  Here  they  found  that  Lord  Howe 
had  dispatched  a  boat  to  meet  them.  In  the  boat 
was  a  British  officer  who  had  been  sent  as  a  hostage 
to  insure  their  safe  return.  The  committee  unan- 


172  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

imously  agreed  that  they  would  trust  Lord  Howe 
without  a  hostage,  and  invited  the  officer  to  go 
with  them  in  the  boat. 

On  Staten  Island  a  regiment  of  Hessian  troops 
had  been  drawn  up  to  receive  them.  When  Lord 
Howe  saw  his  officer  in  the  boat,  he  cried  out, 

"Gentlemen,  you  pay  me  a  very  high  compli- 
ment, and  you  may  depend  upon  it,  I  will  consider 
it  the  most  sacred  of  things." 

He  shook  hands  very  cordially  with  Franklin, 
was  introduced  to  the  other  gentlemen,  and  then 
escorted  the  party  to  the  old  stone  mansion  where 
the  interview  was  to  take  place. 

Refreshments  had  been  prepared  in  a  large  room 
decorated  for  the  occasion  with  green  branches  and 
moss.  Here  for  half  an  hour  they  chatted  agree- 
ably, while  they  ate  and  drank.  When  the  meal 
was  finished  the  servants  cleared  the  table,  and 
the  formal  "interview"  began. 

From  the  beginning  it  was  evident  that  no 
agreement  could  be  reached.  Lord  Howe  was 
authorized  to  treat  with  the  Americans  only  as 
subjects  of  England.  None  of  the  committee 
would  enter  into  any  understanding  with  Great 
Britain  except  as  the  representatives  of  an  inde- 
pendent country.  On  both  sides  the  discussion 
was  conducted  with  the  greatest  courtesy  and 


FRANKLIN  THE  COMMISSIONER          173 

politeness,  but  neither  party  would  give  in,  so  the 
interview  ended  exactly  where  it  began. 

Lord  Howe  escorted  his  guests  back  to  their 
boat,  said  good-by  to  them,  and  gave  orders  that 
they  be  landed  on  the  New  Jersey  shore.  A  few 
days  later  the  committee  presented  its  report  of 
the  interview  to  Congress,  which  instructed  them 
to  have  it  published  in  the  newspapers.  This  was 
done,  and  no  further  notice  of  it  was  taken. 

It  was  some  time  in  September  before  any  news 
was  received  from  France.  Meanwhile,  the  battle 
of  Long  Island  had  been  fought  and  lost,  and  New 
York  had  fallen.  People  began  to  wonder  whether 
the  struggle  for  independence  was  not  doomed. 
In  the  midst  of  this  gloom  and  depression,  a  letter 
of  many  pages  arrived  from  Dr.  Dubourg,  Frank- 
lin's friend  in  Paris.  It  was  addressed  to  Franklin, 
but  it  contained  information  of  such  importance 
that  he  made  haste  to  present  it  to  Congress.  In 
it  Dr.  Dubourg  not  only  assured  him  of  his  own 
assistance,  but  guaranteed  the  support  of  France. 
Already  supplies  were  being  bought  for  the  Amer- 
icans, and  measures  taken  toward  the  purchase  of 
guns  and  ammunition.  Several  of  the  powerful 
ministers  had  been  interviewed  and  had  expressed 
themselves  as  being  in  sympathy  with  the  Amer- 
ican cause. 


174  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Thrilled  with  joy  and  hope,  Congress  decided  to 
honor  the  French  nation  by  sending  over  a  larger 
and  more  important  embassy,  the  members  of 
which  were  to  be  elected  by  ballot.  The  election 
took  place  on  September  26.  On  the  first  vote 
Franklin  was  chosen  unanimously.  Thomas  Jef- 
ferson and  Silas  Deane  received  the  next  highest 
number  of  votes ;  but  on  account  of  the  ill  health 
of  his  wife  Jefferson  was  forced  to  resign,  and 
Arthur  Lee  was  appointed  to  fill  his  place. 

When  Franklin  was  told  that  he  had  been 
elected,  he  turned  to  Dr.  Rush,  who  was  sitting 
beside  him,  and  said, 

"I  am  old  and  good  for  nothing;  but  as  the 
storekeepers  say  of  their  remnants  of  cloth,  'I  am 
but  a  fag  end,  and  you  may  have  me  for  what  you 
please.' " 

A  man  of  seventy,  he  had  just  been  elected  to 
fill  a  difficult  post,  and  the  greatest  and  most 
important  work  of  his  whole  life  still  lay  before 
him. 


CHAPTER  XVm 

THE  MISSION  TO  FRANCE 

ON  October  27,  1776,  Franklin,  accompanied 
by  his  two  young  grandsons,  William  Temple 
Franklin,  the  son  of  his  son  William,  and  Benjamin 
Franklin  Bache,  the  son  of  his  daughter,  Sarah 
Bache,  sailed  from  Marcus  Hook,  a  small  town  on 
the  Delaware  River  below  Philadelphia.  The 
vessel  which  carried  them  was  the  Reprisal,  a  fast 
sloop  of  war  belonging  to  the  infant  navy  of  the 
United  States.  Captain  Wickes  commanded  her. 
Franklin  and  his  grandsons  went  on  board  secretly, 
since  it  was  thought  best  to  keep  his  mission  from 
the  knowledge  of  the  British ;  and  as  soon  as  they 
had  embarked  the  Reprisal  weighed  anchor  and 
headed  toward  the  sea. 

One  of  Franklin's  last  acts  before  leaving  Phil- 
adelphia was  to  lend  Congress  about  twenty  thou- 
sand dollars,  all  the  money  he  could,  at  the  moment, 
gather  together  from  his  personal  fortune. 

The  cargo  of  the  Reprisal  consisted  of  fifteen 
thousand  dollars'  worth  of  indigo,  which  was  to 

175 


176  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

go  toward  paying  the  expenses  of  the  embassy. 
There  was  very  little  ready  money  in  the  United 
States  at  that  time,  and  the  only  way  Congress 
had  of  paying  for  supplies  furnished  by  France 
was  to  give  their  value  in  tobacco,  indigo,  cotton, 
and  merchandise  of  various  kinds. 

During  the  voyage  across  the  ocean  the  Reprisal 
was  chased  by  the  enemy's  warships  several  times. 
The  captain  beat  to  quarters  and  made  ready  for 
battle,  but  his  orders  were  to  escape  without  fight- 
ing, if  possible;  and  in  each  case  he  managed  to 
elude  his  pursuers.  The  weather  was  stormy  all 
the  way  across,  but  in  spite  of  rough  seas  Franklin 
was  able  to  get  the  daily  temperature  of  the  water, 
and  verify  some  experiments,  made  on  previous 
voyages,  as  to  the  warmth  of  the  Gulf  Stream. 

As  they  neared  the  French  coast  they  fell  in 
with  some  English  merchantmen,  and,  capturing 
two  of  them,  carried  them  into  port.  The  Reprisal 
arrived  in  Quiberon  Bay,  on  the  coast  of  Brittany, 
on  November  29,  and  on  December  3  Franklin 
and  his  grandsons  were  landed  at  Auray,  a  neigh- 
boring seaport.  Franklin  was  very  much  fatigued 
by  the  voyage,  but  refused  to  remain  in  Auray.  A 
post  chaise  was  procured  from  Vannes,  a  town 
some  distance  away,  and  the  party  pushed  on 
toward  the  city  of  Nantes. 


THE    MISSION    TO    FRANCE  177 

"The  carriage,"  Franklin  says  in  the  little  journal  which 
he  kept,  "was  a  miserable  one,  with  tired  horses,  the  evening 
dark,  scarce  a  traveler  but  ourselves  on  the  road;  and  to 
make  it  more  comfortable,  the  driver  stopped  near  a  wood 
we  were  to  pass  through,  to  tell  us  that  a  gang  of  eighteen 
robbers  infested  that  wood,  who  but  two  weeks  ago  had 
robbed  and  murdered  some  travelers  on  that  very  spot." 

Franklin  and  his  party,  however,  came  through 
safely,  and  arrived  at  Nantes  on  December  7. 
This  city  was  one  of  the  great  seaports  of  France. 
Monsieur  Penet,  the  French  merchant  whom  the 
Secret  Committee  had  commissioned  to  buy  stores 
for  the  Americans,  lived  there,  and  had  already 
begun  to  ship  supplies  to  the  United  States. 

Franklin  remained  in  Nantes  several  days,  rest- 
ing, and  receiving  hosts  of  friends  and  visitors. 
Then,  thoroughly  recovered  from  his  fatigue,  he 
continued  his  journey  to  Paris,  where  he  arrived 
on  December  21. 

The  enthusiasm  with  which  the  French  people 
greeted  him  was  truly  remarkable.  No  doubt  it 
was  due  in  part  to  his  fame  as  a  scientist,  and  to 
his  "Poor  Richard's"  sayings,  which  had  already 
been  translated  three  times  into  French ;  but  his 
own  personality  and  charm,  together  with  the 
mystery  surrounding  his  mission,  and  the  general 
feeling  of  sympathy  toward  the  young  American 
nation,  added  greatly  to  his  reputation;  and 


178  BENJAMIN   FRANKLIN 

within  a  very  short  time  he  became  the  best-known 
and  most  popular  man  in  the  whole  of  France. 
This  enviable  reputation  he  retained  during  the 
entire  period  of  his  residence  in  that  country. 

"His  name,"  says  John  Adams,  when  writing  about  him  a 
few  years  later,  "was  familiar  to  government  and  people, 
to  kings,  courtiers,  nobility,  clergy,  and  philosophers,  as 
well  as  plebeians,  to  such  a  degree  that  there  was  scarcely 
a  peasant  or  a  citizen,  a  valet-de-chambre,  coachman  or 
footman,  a  lady's  chambermaid,  or  a  scullion  in  a  kitchen, 
who  was  not  familiar  with  it,  and  who  did  not  consider  him 
a  friend  to  human  kind." 

V 

Honors  were  showered  upon  him  everywhere. 
When  he  passed  through  the  streets  to  any  public 
function,  crowds  welcomed  him  with  acclamations. 
He  was  received  in  the  best  houses,  entertained  by 
the  nobility,  and  visited  by  the  most  prominent 
statesmen,  scientists,  and  writers  of  the  day. 

Portraits,  medallions,  medals,  engravings,  and 
busts  to  the  number  of  a  hundred  and  more  were 
made  of  him.  There  was  not  a  print  shop  in 
France  that  did  not  have  his  picture  on  view.  In 
a  letter  to  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Bache,  written  in 
1779,  three  years  after  his  arrival  in  Paris,  he 
alludes  humorously  to  this  fact. 

After  describing  a  certain  medallion  about  which  she  had 
inquired,  he  goes  on:  "A  variety  of  others  have  been  made 


THE    MISSION   TO   FRANCE  179 

since  of  different  sizes ;  some  to  be  set  in  the  lids  of  snuff- 
boxes, and  some  so  small  as  to  be  worn  in  rings;  and  the 
numbers  sold  are  incredible.  These,  with  the  pictures, 
busts,  and  prints  (of  which  copies  upon  copies  are  spread 
everywhere) ,  have  made  your  father's  face  as  well  known  as 
that  of  the  moon,  so  that  he  durst  not  do  anything  that  would 
oblige  him  to  run  away,  as  his  phiz  would  discover  him 
wherever  he  should  venture  to  show  it.  It  is  said  by  learned 
etymologists,  that  the  name  doll,  for  the  images  children 
play  with,  is  derived  from  the  word  IDOL.  From  the 
number  of  dolls  now  made  of  him,  he  may  be  said,  in  that 
sense,  to  be  i-doll-ized  in  this  country." 

Five  days  after  Franklin's  arrival  in  Paris,  he, 
with  Silas  Deane  and  Arthur  Lee,  the  other  mem- 
bers of  the  embassy  who  had  joined  him  there,  was 
formally  presented  to  the  Count  de  Vergennes, 
French  minister  for  foreign  affairs.  Deane  had 
already  had  numerous  interviews  with  the  count, 
and  had  received  his  assurances  of  the  good  will  of 
the  French  government;  but  as  yet  France  did 
not  feel  that  she  could  help  the  United  States 
openly,  and  all  the  supplies  which  had  already 
been  sent  to  America  had  been  shipped  quietly 
and  as  though  coming  from  private  parties  and 
not  from  the  government  itself.  Lord  Stormont, 
the  English  ambassador  to  France,  had  been  very 
active  in  trying  to  stop  the  ships  from  sailing,  and 
had  even  complained  to  the  French  government. 


i8o  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Under  these  circumstances  the  Count  de  Ver- 
gennes  had  to  move  cautiously;  and  when  the 
American  envoys  presented  their  commission  and 
asked  France  to  lend  America  eight  ships  of  the 
line  to  strengthen  her  small  navy,  he  could  only 
repeat  his  assurance  of  France's  friendship,  and 
give  vague  promises  of  assistance.  A  few  days 
later,  however,  when  the  envoys'  requests  had  been 
submitted  to  him  in  writing,  the  count  told  them 
that  the  government  would  lend  the  United  States 
two  million  francs,  —  four  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars, —  without  interest,  providing  the  transaction 
was  kept  a  secret. 

The  envoys  joyfully  accepted  the  offer,  and  in 
January,  1777,  sent  the  first  instalment  of  five 
hundred  thousand  francs  to  Congress. 

Franklin  spent  his  first  few  weeks  in  France  with 
Silas  Deane  in  Paris,  but  the  noise  and  bustle  of 
the  city,  together  with  the  constant  flow  of  visitors, 
tired  him  greatly;  so  when  Monsieur  de  Chau- 
mont,  a  wealthy  Frenchman,  and  a  stanch  supporter 
of  the  American  cause,  urged  him  to  occupy  a  part 
of  his  large  house  in  the  neighboring  village  of 
Passy,  Franklin  accepted  gratefully.  It  was  in 
this  house,  only  two  miles  from  Paris,  that  Frank- 
lin lived  during  the  remainder  of  his  stay  in  France. 
Monsieur  de  Chaumont  refused  absolutely  to  allow 


THE    MISSION   TO   FRANCE  181 

him  to  pay  any  rent,  saying  that,  when  the  war 
was  over,  if  Congress  wished  to  compensate  him, 
it  might  grant  him  a  piece  of  the  land  in  the  great 
country  which  he  had  helped  to  set  free. 

Franklin  sent  his  younger  grandson,  Benjamin 
Franklin  Bache,  a  boy  of  eight  years,  to  school  in 
the  neighborhood.  It  had  been  his  intention  to 
have  William  Temple  Franklin,  who  was  then 
eighteen,  study  law;  but  the  stress  of  work  was 
too  great  for  Franklin  to  do  alone,  and  he  finally 
determined  to  keep  his  elder  grandson  with  him  as 
his  private  secretary. 

The  winter  of  1777  was  an  anxious  season  for 
the  envoys.  General  Burgoyne  with  an  army  of 
ten  thousand  men  had  set  out  from  England  to 
reenforce  the  British  troops  in  America;  and  the 
meager  news  which  came  from  the  United  States 
was  anything  but  reassuring.  After  the  capture 
of  New  York  the  enemy  had  invested  the  surround- 
ing country,  overrun  New  Jersey,  and  were  advanc- 
ing upon  Philadelphia.  France  refused  to  give 
any  further  aid  to  the  Americans  until  she  could 
be  certain  of  the  success  of  their  cause.  For  a 
time  Franklin  and  his  colleagues  began  to  believe 
that  they  might  be  ambassadors  without  any 
country  to  represent.  Then,  in  the  spring,  came 
the  welcome  tidings  of  the  crossing  of  the  Delaware 


182  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

and  the  capture  of  Trenton  by  Washington,  and 
immediately  the  enthusiasm  of  the  French  was 
revived. 

In  May  the  Marquis  de  La  Fayette  fitted  out  a 
vessel  at  his  own  expense  and  set  sail  for  the 
United  States.  It  became  the  fashion  for  young 
Frenchmen  of  all  classes  to  go  out  to  America  and 
fight.  Every  day  Franklin  was  besieged  with 
applications,  many  of  which  showed  so  much 
eagerness  and  zeal  that  he  had  not  the  heart  to 
refuse  them. 

The  arrival  in  April  of  the  American  sloop  of 
war  Lexington  also  served  to  raise  the  envoy's 
hopes.  The  Reprisal,  which  had  brought  Frank- 
lin over,  had  been  cruising  around  in  European 
waters  for  months,  capturing  prizes  and  sending 
them  to  Nantes  and  other  French  seaports.  Now, 
with  the  Lexington,  and  a  small  cutter  named  the 
Dolphin,  she  was  sent  out  by  the  envoys  to  inter- 
cept the  fleet  of  ships  laden  with  linen  which  were 
due  to  sail  from  Belfast  in  June.  The  three  vessels 
sailed  entirely  around  Ireland;  and  though  they 
failed  to  come  up  with  the  linen  ships,  they  man- 
aged to  capture  or  sink  sixteen  English  merchant- 
men. They  took  their  prizes  into  Nantes;  but 
Lord  Stormont  protested  to  the  French  govern- 
ment, and  the  Count  de  Vergennes  was  forced  to 


THE    MISSION    TO    FRANCE  183 

order  the  vessels  to  leave  the  harbor.  The  English 
ambassador  had  made  similar  protests  against  the 
Reprisal  before;  but  Captain  Wickes,  following 
his  former  practice,  coolly  outwitted  the  English. 
He  invited  a  party  of  French  shipowners  on  board 
his  ship,  took  them  and  all  the  prizes  outside  the 
harbor,  and  there  sold  the  captured  boats  to  the 
Frenchmen.  When  the  vessels  returned  to  Nantes 
they  came  back  as  French  vessels,  and  Lord  Stor- 
mont  could  say  nothing.  Whether  Franklin  sug- 
gested this  procedure  or  not  is  unknown;  in  its 
cleverness  of  thought  it  at  least  bears  the  marks  of 
his  inspiration. 

In  a  similar  matter  Franklin  was  very  deeply 
involved.  Through  a  secret  agent  the  envoys 
purchased  a  fast  sailing  vessel  from  the  English, 
and  had  her  sent  to  the  French  port  of  Dunkirk, 
where  she  was  fitted  out  as  a  ship  of  war.  She  was 
called  the  Surprise.  Captain  Gustavus  Conyng- 
ham  was  put  in  command  of  her.  His  first  capture 
was  the  packet  which  carried  the  mails  between 
England  and  Holland.  He  took  her  into  Dunkirk 
and  forwarded  the  mails  to  the  envoys  in  Paris. 
Enraged  at  the  way  he  had  been  previously  tricked, 
Lord  Stormont  now  protested  so  violently  that  the 
French  government  was  forced  to  take  active 
measures,  and  arrested  Captain  Conyngham  and 


184  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

his  crew,  confiscated  the  Surprise,  and  let  the 
packet  go  free. 

The  envoys  meanwhile  had  procured  another 
vessel  called  the  Revenge.  Through  their  efforts 
Captain  Conyngham  and  his  men  were  released 
from  prison  and  put  in  charge  of  her.  Captain 
Conyngham  let  it  be  known  that  he  was  going  to 
make  a  trading  voyage  to  Norway,  sent  ashore  his 
guns  and  most  of  his  crew,  and  took  on  board  a 
cargo  of  merchandise.  In  order  to  insure  his 
peaceful  behavior,  the  French  government  took 
the  bond  of  Hodge  and  Allen,  American  merchants 
living  in  Dunkirk. 

Captain  Conyngham,  setting  sail,  remained 
outside  the  harbor  until  nightfall,  when  a  barge 
brought  out  his  guns  and  crew,  and  he  slipped 
away.  A  few  days  later  two  English  warships 
appeared  at  Dunkirk  to  take  the  captain  and  his 
vessel  to  England,  only  to  find  that  they  had  gone. 

Lord  Stormont  immediately  notified  the  Count 
de  Vergennes  and  the  latter  ordered  the  arrest  of 
Hodge.  He  was  confined  in  the  Bastille,  in  Paris, 
for  six  weeks,  where  he  was  lodged  as  comfortably 
as  he  would  have  been  at  home ;  and  when  the  feel- 
ing against  him  had  somewhat  died  down,  on  the 
application  of  Franklin  he  was  released.  Captain 
Conyngham  not  only  made  good  his  escape,  but, 


THE    MISSION    TO    FRANCE  185 

after   many    adventures,    managed    to    take    the 
Revenge  safely  to  America. 

So  the  summer  and  the  autumn  of  1777  passed 
away.  By  July  there  were  as  many  as  twelve 
American  agents  in  Europe.  Most  of  them  had 
been  sent  to  represent  Congress  in  different  coun- 
tries, but,  so  far,  France  was  the  only  nation  that 
would  recognize  the  United  States  even  secretly, 
and  most  of  the  agents  were  living  in  Paris.  On 
Sundays  they  usually  dined  at  Franklin's  house  in 
Passy,  where,  with  their  secretaries  and  Franklin's 
grandsons,  they  sometimes  made  as  large  a  party 
as  twenty.  In  spite  of  their  common  interest  in 
the  welfare  of  the  United  States,  however,  and 
their  outward  show  of  friendliness,  they  were 
generally  at  odds  with  one  another.  Arthur  Lee, 
one  of  the  three  envoys,  caused  most  of  the  trouble. 
He  was  of  a  suspicious,  jealous  nature,  always 
ready  to  believe  anything  bad  about  any  one,  and 
envious  of  everybody  who  was  honored  above 
himself.  On  his  side  were  William  Lee,  his  brother, 
and  Ralph  Izard,  a  wealthy  resident  of  South 
Carolina,  both  men  of  his  own  type.  Throughout 
the  whole  period  of  their  residence  in  France,  these 
men  or  their  friends  were  opposing  objections  to 
every  move  of  Franklin  and  his  party,  and  even 
wrote  letters  full  of  insinuations  against  them  to 


i86  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

Congress.  At  first  they  directed  their  malice  at 
Silas  Deane,  but  later  Franklin  himself  came  in 
for  a  share  of  it;  and  it  was  one  of  the  most 
difficult  tasks  of  his  mission  to  placate  them  and 
keep  them  in  good  humor,  so  that  the  business  of 
the  United  States  might  be  carried  on. 

Inspired  by  the  success  of  the  Reprisal  and  the 
Lexington,  the  envoys  ordered  a  frigate  to  be  built 
for  them  in  Holland;  but  long  before  she  was 
finished  the  Reprisal  had  foundered  at  sea,  the 
Lexington  had  been  captured  by  the  English  ship 
of  war  Alert,  and  Franklin's  high  hopes  of  striking 
another  blow  at  English  commerce  were  dashed  to 
the  ground. 

Again  the  envoys  faced  an  anxious  period  of 
waiting.  For  some  time  no  news  had  come  from 
America,  and  they  had  no  means  of  finding  out 
how  the  war  was  progressing.  A  British  fleet  had 
blockaded  the  port  of  Nantes,  so  that  none  of  the 
vessels  loaded  with  supplies  for  the  United  States 
could  set  sail.  Besides,  their  money  was  getting 
low.  Under  these  circumstances,  Franklin  and  his 
associates  determined  to  appeal  to  King  Louis  XVI, 
asking  him  to  recognize  the  independence  of  the 
United  States,  and  grant  them  a  loan  of  fourteen 
million  francs.  As  part  payment  they  offered  to 
sell  him  the  frigate  being  built  in  Holland. 


THE   MISSION   TO   FRANCE  187 

On  October  i  the  appeal  was  presented.  Weeks 
passed  before  an  answer  was  received.  The 
king  agreed  to  purchase  the  frigate  and  grant  a 
loan  of  three  million  francs,  but  refused  to  ac- 
knowledge the  independence  of  the  United  States. 

Scarcely  had  the  envoys  time  to  congratulate 
themselves  on  this  partial  success,  when  news  came 
of  the  taking  of  Philadelphia  by  General  Howe, 
Lord  Howe's  brother ;  and  to  the  anxieties  of  his 
position  Franklin  had  added  the  anxiety  for  the 
safety  of  his  daughter  and  friends.  It  was  months 
before  he  heard  that  Mrs.  Bache  and  her  family  had 
escaped  from  the  city,  and  that  Captain  Andre, 
the  English  officer  who  was  afterwards  arrested 
and  shot  as  a  spy,  had  been  quartered  in  his  house. 
Yet  even  with  these  new  troubles  and  perplexities 
to  worry  him,  his  wit  was  as  sparkling  as  ever, 
and  when  an  Englishman  remarked  to  him  that 
Howe  had  taken  Philadelphia,  he  answered  quickly, 

"I  beg  your  pardon,  sir;  Philadelphia  has  taken 
Howe." 

How  true  this  statement  proved  to  be  was  shown 
later  when  Washington  shut  the  British  up  in 
Philadelphia  for  many  months. 

This  was  the  condition  of  affairs  toward  the  end 
of  November,  1777.  In  the  beginning  of  December 
a  rumor  reached  Passy  that  an  American  vessel 


i88  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

had  landed  at  Nantes,  and  that  Mr.  Austin,  a 
special  messenger,  was  speeding  toward  Paris  with 
important  dispatches.  All  the  American  agents 
and  officials  hastened  out  to  Passy  to  await  the 
coming  of  the  messenger.  When  he  arrived  their 
impatience  was  so  great  that  they  rushed  out  of 
the  house  to  meet  him,  Franklin  in  the  lead. 

"Sir,"  he  demanded,  "is  Philadelphia  taken?" 

"Yes,  sir,"  replied  Austin. 

His  worst  fears  realized,  Franklin  clasped  his 
hands  silently,  and  turned  back  toward  the  house. 

"But,  sir,"  cried  Austin  after  him,  "I  have 
greater  news  than  that.  General  Burgoyne  and 
his  whole  army  are  prisoners  of  war!" 


CHAPTER  XIX 

FRANKLIN  THE  TREATY  MAKER 

As  soon  as  the  news  of  General  Burgoyne's 
defeat  was  made  known  to  the  French  government, 
it  sent  word  to  the  envoys  by  Monsieur  Gerard, 
secretary  of  the  king's  council  and  under  secretary 
for  foreign  affairs,  that  it  would  consider  their 
proposals  for  an  alliance  with  France.  Franklin's 
joy  knew  no  bounds.  This  was  what  he  had  been 
laboring  for  ever  since  he  had  arrived,  and  now, 
at  the  moment  when  he  thought  all  hope  was  gone, 
the  king  himself  was  proposing  an  alliance. 

On  December  12,  six  days  after  the  news  had 
reached  Passy,  the  envoys  drove  out  to  Versailles 
and  had  a  long  conference  with  the  Count  de 
Vergennes,  in  which  he  renewed  the  proposal, 
and  desired  the  envoys  to  draw  up  the  terms  of 
the  treaties.  On  December  17,  Monsieur  Gerard 
again  called  on  the  envoys  and  gave  them  the  final 
assurance  that  the  treaties  would  be  made,  and 
that  the  independence  of  the  United  States  would 
be  recognized  and  maintained.  A  courier  had  been 

189 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

sent  to  the  court  of  Spain  to  learn  that  nation's 
attitude,  and  as  soon  as  he  returned  the  matter 
could  be  immediately  put  through. 

The  next  six  weeks  were  taken  up  with  consul- 
tations, interviews,  and  discussions  over  the  terms 
of  the  alliance.  As  usual,  Arthur  Lee  did  his  ut- 
most to  hamper  the  proceedings,  objecting  to 
various  clauses,  and  showing  his  envy  and  suspi- 
cions when  anything  was  done  without  his  con- 
currence; but  at  last,  on  February  6,  1778,  the 
papers  were  signed  by  the  envoys  and  by  Mon- 
sieur Gerard,  representing  the  French  government. 

There  were  really  three  treaties.  The  first  one, 
called  the  Treaty  of  Amity  and  Commerce,  bound 
both  countries  to  trade  fairly  with  each  other  and 
remain  friends.  The  second,  called  the  Treaty 
of  Alliance,  recognized  the  independence  of  the 
United  States,  and  stated  that  its  purpose  was  to 
maintain  effectually  the  liberty  and  sovereignty 
of  that  country,  both  in  matters  of  government 
and  of  commerce.  This  treaty  was  to  be  enforced 
only  in  case  France,  by  aiding  America,  should  be 
dragged  into  a  war  with  England,  and  contained 
a  provision  that  "neither  of  the  two  parties  shall 
conclude  either  truce  or  peace  with  Great  Britain 
without  the  formal  consent  of  the  other  first  ob- 
tained." The  third  treaty  was  a  secret  one,  in- 


FRANKLIN  THE  TREATY  MAKER        191 

tended  to  allow  Spain  to  join  the  alliance  if  she 
should  desire  to  do  so. 

Monsieur  Gerard  wished  to  keep  the  matter 
secret  until  the  treaties  had  been  formally  ratified 
by  Congress ;  but  during  the  negotiations  Franklin, 
following  a  custom  of  his,  had  sent  Mr.  Austin  to 
England  to  notify  his  friends  and  others  there  who 
favored  the  American  cause ;  and  on  February  17, 
only  eleven  days  after  the  treaties  had  been  signed, 
the  fact  was  announced  in  the  House  of  Commons 
by  Charles  Fox.  It  was  at  the  very  moment  when 
Lord  North,  the  premier,  was  trying  to  get  Parlia- 
ment to  grant  America  what  Franklin  had  de- 
manded during  the  last  days  of  his  residence  in 
London ;  and  the  proceedings  in  Parliament  had 
to  be  dropped,  France  having  beaten  England  by 
almost  two  weeks. 

When  the  treaties  were  signed,  Dr.  Bancroft, 
one  of  the  Americans  present,  noticed  that  Franklin 
wore  the  same  suit  that  he  had  worn  in  London 
on  the  day  when  Wedderburn  had  made  his  out- 
rageous charges  against  him  in  the  Cockpit.  He 
mentioned  the  coincidence  to  Franklin,  but  the 
latter  only  smiled  and  refused  to  admit  that 
he  had  worn  the  suit  in  remembrance  of  his  in- 
juries. 

An  amusing  incident  which  occurred  during  the 


192  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

negotiations  shows  Franklin's  keen  wit  and  tact 
in  keeping  the  peace  between  his  colleagues.  One 
day  a  large  cake  was  sent  to  the  rooms  in  which 
the  envoys  were  working.  It  was  addressed  to 
"Le  Digne  Franklin"  (the  worthy  Franklin). 

Mr.  Deane,  when  he  saw  the  inscription,  turned 
to  Franklin  and  said,  "As  usual,  Doctor,  we  have 
to  thank  you  for  our  accommodation,  and  to 
appropriate  your  present  to  our  joint  use." 

"Not  at  all,"  replied  Franklin;  "this  must  be 
intended  for  all  the  commissioners,  only  these 
French  people  cannot  write  English.  They  mean, 
no  doubt,  Lee,  Deane,  Franklin." 

In  spite  of  the  French  government's  desire  to 
keep  the  alliance  a  secret  until  Congress  had  been 
heard  from,  the  envoys  were  very  anxious  to  have 
the  treaties  publicly  announced,  and  finally  pre- 
vailed upon  the  Count  de  Vergennes  and  Mon- 
sieur Gerard  to  grant  their  request. 

In  order  that  the  United  States  might  be  recog- 
nized as  an  independent  country,  it  was  necessary 
for  the  envoys  to  be  presented  at  the  French 
Court;  and  March  20  was  the  day  fixed  for  this 
important  event. 

Etiquette  required  those  appearing  before  the 
king  to  wear  wigs.  Franklin  ordered  one,  and  in 
due  time  the  hairdresser  brought  it  to  Passy  to 


FRANKLIN  THE  TREATY  MAKER        193 

be  tried  on.  He  pulled  and  tugged,  but  no  amount 
of  effort  would  make  it  fit  Franklin's  head. 

"Perhaps  it  is  too  small,"  suggested  Franklin 
at  length. 

The  wigmaker  declared  that  it  was  impossible, 
and  then,  flying  into  a  sudden  rage,  he  flung  the 
wig  to  the  ground. 

"No,  Monsieur,"  he  cried  angrily;  "it  is  not 
the  wig  that  is  too  small,  it  is  your  head  that  is 
too  large!"  And  swinging  on  his  heel  he  left  the 
room  in  a  towering  passion. 

It  was  too  late  to  order  another  wig,  and  so 
Franklin  decided  to  break  all  rules  and  go  to  court 
without  one.  He  also  decided  to  leave  off  the 
sword  and  the  chapeau,  or  hat,  which  was  carried 
under  the  arm  on  such  occasions ;  and  dressed  in  a 
suit  of  black  velvet,  with  white  ruffles  at  his  wrists 
and  neck,  white  silk  stockings  and  silver  buckles, 
he  entered  his  coach  at  Passy  on  the  eventful  morn- 
ing, and,  attended  by  a  retinue  of  servants,  was 
driven  to  Versailles,  where  the  other  envoys  and  a 
great  crowd  of  Americans  joined  him.  It  is  said 
that  the  court  chamberlain,  who  guarded  the 
doors  of  the  palace,  hesitated  a  moment  before 
admitting  him ;  but  his  dignified  bearing  and  cap- 
tivating manners  won  him  the  instant  admiration 
of  the  court. 


194  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

The  Count  de  Vergennes  escorted  the  envoys 
and  their  friends  to  the  king's  antechamber;  and 
they  were  soon  ushered  into  the  king's  dressing- 
room,  where  Franklin  and  his  colleagues  were  pre- 
sented to  the  king. 

Louis  XVI  received  them  very  graciously,  as- 
suring them  of  his  friendship  for  the  United  States, 
and  expressing  his  satisfaction  at  the  way  the 
envoys  had  conducted  themselves  during  their 
residence  in  France. 

The  envoys  were  then  taken  across  the  wide 
courtyard  of  the  palace  and  presented  to  the 
members  of  the  king's  cabinet,  the  crowd  clapping 
and  cheering  them  with  great  fervor.  After  a 
magnificent  dinner  at  the  Count  de  Vergennes' 
residence,  at  which  many  of  the  nobility  were 
present,  they  were  conducted  to  the  queen's 
apartments,  where  they  found  Marie  Antoinette 
and  the  royal  family  playing  cards.  Franklin 
was  particularly  honored  by  the  queen,  who  asked 
him  to  stand  near  her,  and  took  occasion  to  speak 
to  him  in  very  friendly  terms. 

Hearing  of  the  envoys'  reception  at  court, 
Lord  Stormont  left  Paris  the  next  morning  and 
returned  to  England.  This  meant  that  war  be- 
tween England  and  France  was  close  at  hand ; 
but  so  unpopular  was  Lord  Stormont  that  many 


FRANKLIN  THE  TREATY  MAKER        195 

looked  upon  his  departure  with  a  feeling  of  re- 
lief. 

On  the  following  day  the  envoys  were  present 
at  a  levee  of  the  queen,  and  they  then  paid  visits  of 
state  to  the  different  members  of  the  royal  family. 
On  this  occasion  they  were  entertained  at  dinner 
by  Monsieur  Gerard. 

After  the  treaties  had  been  made  public,  France 
lost  no  time  in  giving  substantial  aid  to  the  United 
States.  Early  in  April,  not  more  than  two  weeks 
after  the  envoys  had  been  presented  at  court, 
a  fleet  of  French  war  vessels  sailed  for  America. 
They  carried  with  them  Monsieur  Gerard,  who  had 
been  appointed  a  special  ambassador  to  the  United 
States;  and  on  the  same  ship  went  Silas  Deane, 
who,  through  the  efforts  of  Arthur  Lee  and  his 
party,  had  been  recalled  by  Congress.  On  the 
day  Silas  Deane  left  Paris,  John  Adams  landed  at 
Bordeaux  to  fill  his  place. 

On  April  29  of  this  year,  1778,  the  famous 
public  meeting  between  Franklin  and  Voltaire, 
the  great  French  dramatist  and  poet,  took  place. 
It  was  at  a  session  of  the  Academy  of  Sciences  at 
which  Franklin  and  Voltaire  were  present.  During 
a  lull  in  the  proceedings  a  cry  arose  from  the  au- 
dience that  the  two  illustrious  men  should  be  in- 
troduced. When  this  was  done  they  bowed  to 


196  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

each  other;  but  the  people  still  clamored,  so  the 
two  great  philosophers  shook  hands.  Even  then 
those  present  were  not  satisfied  and  kept  shout- 
ing, "You  must  embrace,  French  fashion." 
With  that,  as  John  Adams  related  afterward, 
"the  two  aged  actors  upon  this  great  theater  of 
philosophy  and  frivolity  embraced  each  other  by 
hugging  one  another  in  their  arms,  and  kissing 
each  other's  cheeks;  and  then  the  tumult  sub- 
sided." 

In  this  same  year,  about  the  middle  of  February, 
Captain  John  Paul  Jones  arrived  at  Brest  with  the 
ship  Ranger.  He  had  been  sent  over  by  Congress 
to  take  command  of  the  frigate  which  the  envoys 
were  having  built  in  Holland ;  but  by  the  time  he 
had  reached  France  the  vessel  had  been  sold  to 
the  king.  He  set  out  in  the  Ranger;  and  after  a 
most  successful  cruise,  in  which  he  captured  the 
British  frigate  Drake,  he  returned  to  Brest  sometime 
in  May.  Here  he  was  welcomed  by  the  French 
as  a  hero;  but  Arthur  Lee,  who  had  conceived 
the  idea  that  Jones  had  not  treated  him  with  the 
respect  due  to  his  position,  did  everything  in  his 
power  to  hamper  and  annoy  him;  and  when 
Jones  presented  a  bill  for  five  thousand  dollars 
to  pay  for  his  expenses,  Lee  refused  absolutely  to 
pay  it. 


FRANKLIN  THE  TREATY  MAKER        197 

Franklin,  however,  remained  Jones's  firm  friend, 
and  a  few  weeks  later  wrote  to  Jones  that  the 
French  government  wished  to  put  him  in  command 
of  the  frigate  which  it  had  purchased  from  the 
envoys,  and  suggested  that  Jones  come  to  Paris 
and  arrange  the  matter.  In  his  letter  Franklin 
stated  particularly  that  neither  Adams  nor  Lee, 
the  other  two  envoys,  knew  anything  of  this  prop- 
osition, and  advised  Jones  to  keep  it  secret. 
Indeed,  from  this  time  on,  the  French  government 
insisted  on  dealing  with  Franklin  alone,  and  only 
recognized  Lee  when  it  had  to  —  a  fact  which 
made  Lee  even  more  envious  and  bitter  than  he 
had  been  before. 

Jones  went  to  Paris  and  had  many  interviews 
with  Franklin  and  the  French  ministers.  Every- 
thing seemed  favorable,  and  he  returned  to  Brest, 
where  he  was  to  await  the  arrival  of  the  ship. 
Month  after  month  went  by,  and  still  the  vessel 
did  not  come.  At  first  she  was  not  finished,  and 
then,  when  she  was  ready,  some  of  the  French 
naval  officers  became  jealous  that  a  stranger  should 
be  put  in  command  of  her,  and  raised  objections 
to  the  appointment  of  Jones.  Franklin  did  every- 
thing he  could  to  further  the  latter's  interests, 
but  was  unable  to  obtain  anything  more  than 
promises. 


198  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

It  was  at  this  stage  that  Jones,  who  had  given 
up  all  hope  of  success,  happened  one  day  to  pick 
up  an  old  copy  of  "  Poor  Richard's  Almanac."  One 
of  the  proverbs  caught  his  eye.  "If  you  would 
have  your  business  done,  go,"  he  read;  "if  not, 
send." 

He  took  the  advice,  and  without  delay  went  to 
Versailles,  where,  after  stating  his  case,  he  obtained 
leave  to  purchase  a  ship  and  engage  a  crew.  As  a 
compliment  to  Franklin  and  "  Poor  Richard's 
Almanac,"  from  which  he  had  drawn  his  inspiration, 
he  called  the  vessel  which  he  purchased  the  Bon 
Eomme  Richard;  and  when,  about  the  middle  of 
August,  he  sailed  for  a  cruise  in  English  waters, 
four  other  ships  of  war  were  put  under  his  command 
and  he  was  given  the  rank  of  commodore. 

Meanwhile  the  trouble  between  the  envoys  had 
been  growing  worse  and  worse.  Although  a 
zealous  patriot,  Adams  had  sided  with  Arthur  Lee 
and  his  party,  and  Franklin  found  himself  al- 
most alone.  Lee's  feeling  toward  him  amounted 
now  to  open  enmity,  and  he  took  no  pains  to  con- 
ceal it,  even  writing  letters  to  Congress,  denounc- 
ing Franklin  and  insinuating  that  personal  gain 
was  the  motive  for  most  of  his  official  acts.  At 
last  the  situation  became  intolerable  for  every  one 
concerned ;  and  each  of  the  three  envoys,  together 


FRANKLIN  THE  TREATY  MAKER        199 

with  William  Lee  and  Ralph  Izard,  wrote  home, 
describing  the  state  of  affairs  in  Paris,  and 
advising  Congress  to  revoke  the  commission 
which  the  envoys  held  and  appoint  one  man  sole 
ambassador. 

Congress  thought  well  of  the  idea;  and,  to  the 
surprise  and  disgust  of  the  Lee  party,  chose  Frank- 
lin as  the  ambassador,  or  sole  plenipotentiary,  as 
he  was  called.  LaFayette,  who  had  leave  of  ab- 
sence from  the  United  States,  brought  the  new 
commission  to  France  with  him,  and  delivered  it 
to  Franklin  in  February,  1779.  John  Adams  re- 
turned to  America,  while  Arthur  Lee,  who  had  been 
appointed  the  American  representative  in  Spain, 
still  held  that  position,  although  as  yet  Spain  had 
not  seen  fit  to  recognize  the  United  States. 

The  Count  de  Vergennes  and  other  government 
officials  who  had  grown  to  detest  Lee  and  his 
party,  were  joyful  at  the  news;  and  in  April,  as 
soon  as  Franklin  had  recovered  from  a  painful 
attack  of  the  gout,  he  was  again  presented  at 
court. 

The  presentation  was  attended  with  greater 
ceremony  and  splendor  than  before ;  and  it  is  even 
said  that  a  lady  of  the  court  placed  a  wreath  upon 
his  head  in  token  of  the  love  and  esteem  in  which 
he  was  held. 


CHAPTER  XX 

FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT 

THE  next  few  years  of  Franklin's  life  in  Paris 
were  chiefly  employed  in  borrowing  money  from 
France !  Congress  looked  to  him  to  supply  the 
United  States  with  funds,  and  he  seldom  failed 
them.  During  his  whole  term  of  office  as  envoy 
and  plenipotentiary,  he  managed  to  obtain  from 
the  French  government,  either  as  a  loan  or  as  a  free 
gift,  the  immense  sum  of  twenty-six  million  francs. 
His  success  in  this  respect  was  mainly  due  to  his 
wonderful  charm  of  manner,  and  his  no  less  wonder- 
ful tact.  He  was  a  born  courtier  and  diplomat; 
indeed,  he  was  the  greatest,  if  not  the  only 
real,  diplomat  whom  this  country  has  ever  pro- 
duced. 

In  1779  Congress  commissioned  him  to  pur- 
chase a  sword  for  LaFayette  and  present  it  to  him 
as  a  gift  from  the  United  States.  When  finished 
it  cost  over  one  thousand  dollars.  Franklin  sent 
it  to  LaFayette  by  his  grandson,  William  Temple 
Franklin.  In  the  letter  which  accompanied  it 


FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT  201 

Franklin  paid  a  graceful  tribute  to  the  young 
French  general  who  had  done  so  much  for  the  cause 
of  independence. 

"By  the  help  of  the  exquisite  artists  France  affords," 
he  graciously  wrote,  "I  find  it  easy  to  express  everything 
but  the  sense  we  have  of  your  worth  and  our  obligations  to 
you.  For  this,  figures  and  even  words  are  found  insuf- 
ficient." 

It  was  shortly  after  this  incident  that  Franklin 
and  LaFayette,  by  their  joint  efforts,  persuaded 
the  French  government  to  send  troops  to  the 
United  States  to  aid  the  Americans.  These 
soldiers  were  of  immense  benefit  to  Washington, 
and  helped  materially  in  bringing  the  Revolution 
to  a  successful  conclusion. 

Of  his  private  life  during  these  years  volumes 
might  be  written.  His  house  at  Passy  was  the 
meeting-place  of  most  of  the  great  scientists  and 
learned  men  of  France.  There  was  scarcely  a  day 
when  some  one  of  distinction  did  not  call  upon 
him,  and  his  many  dinner  parties  and  recep- 
tions were  attended  by  the  most  intelligent  persons 
of  every  rank.  Always  of  a  sociable  disposition, 
he  charmed  every  one  with  his  conversation  and 
wit;  and  no  small  part  of  the  success  which 
marked  his  work  for  the  United  States  was  owing 
to  the  hosts  of  close  personal  friends  whom  he 


202  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

made  and  kept,  and  the  loyalty  and  enthusiasm 
for  the  American  cause  with  which  he  inspired 
them. 

Among  his  scientific  writings  of  this  period  was 
a  paper  on  the  aurora  borealis.  This  was  read 
before  the  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences  in  the 
spring  of  1779,  and  gained  for  its  author  much 
renown,  both  in  learned  and  in  social  circles. 

The  best  of  his  lighter  and  purely  humorous 
writings  also  date  from  this  time.  He  wrote 
them  for  the  amusement  of  his  friends,  and  gener- 
ally read  them  himself  at  the  little  gatherings  which 
met  either  at  his  house,  or  at  that  of  some  ac- 
quaintance. Among  the  best  known  of  these  latter 
writings  are,  "The  Petition  of  the  Left  Hand," 
"The  Handsome  and  Deformed  Leg,"  "Morals 
of  Chess,"  and  the  famous  "Dialogue  between 
Franklin  and  the  Gout,"  in  which  "Madame 
Gout,"  after  warning  Franklin  that  he  himself  is 
to  blame  for  that  very  painful  disease,  ends  by 
giving  him  many  sharp  twinges  of  it. 

It  is  very  probable  that  these  stories  and  witti- 
cisms were  written  by  him  in  English  and  later 
translated  by  some  friend  into  French.  At  any 
rate,  they  were  circulated  widely  over  the  whole 
of  Paris,  and  repeated  by  every  one  as  the  latest 
specimen  of  Franklin's  humor. 


FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT  203 

Of  his  personal  appearance  at  this  time  he  him- 
self has  left  an  amusing  description.  It  occurs 
in  one  of  the  first  letters  that  he  wrote  after  his 
arrival  in  France.  "Figure  me  in  your  mind," 
he  says,  "as  jolly  as  formerly,  and  as  strong  and 
hearty,  only  a  few  years  older ;  very  plainly  dressed, 
wearing  my  thin  gray  straight  hair,  that  peeps  out 
under  my  only  coiffure,  a  fine  fur  cap,  which  comes 
down  my  forehead  almost  to  my  spectacles." 

The  fur  cap  he  soon  discarded,  but  the  spectacles 
he  wore  to  the  end  of  his  days.  Until  he  arrived 
in  France  he  had  carried  two  pairs,  one  for  reading 
and  one  for  seeing  objects  at  a  distance.  These 
he  found  inconvenient ;  and  in  Paris  he  combined 
the  two  in  a  single  pair,  and  invented  what  would 
now  be  called  bifocal  glasses,  the  upper  half  of  each 
glass  being  made  for  long  distance,  and  the  lower 
half  for  reading,  writing,  and  the  like. 

Another  account  of  Franklin  is  given  by  his 
friend  the  Abbe  Morellet: 

"His  conversation,"  writes  the  Abb6,  "was  exquisite  — 
a  perfect  good  nature,  a  simplicity  of  manners,  an  upright- 
ness of  mind  that  made  itself  felt  in  the  smallest  things, 
an  extreme  gentleness,  and,  above  all,  a  sweet  serenity  that 
easily  became  gayety ;  such  was  the  society  of  this  great 
man,  who  has  placed  his  country  among  the  number  of  in- 
dependent states,  and  made  one  of  the  most  important 
discoveries  of  the  age." 


204  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

An  anecdote  of  this  period  affords  a  good  ex- 
ample of  his  quick  and  never-failing  gift  of  repartee. 
He  was  invited  to  all  the  parties  and  functions 
given  by  the  court.  At  these  festivities  he  often 
met  the  old  Duchess  de  Bourbon,  who,  like  Frank- 
lin, was  very  fond  of  chess.  One  day,  while  they 
were  playing,  she  happened  to  put  her  king  in 
prize,  and  Franklin  promptly  took  it. 

"Ah,"  she  said,  "we  do  not  take  kings  so." 

"We  do  in  America,"  answered  Franklin. 

There  were  many  fe"tes  given  in  his  honor.  The 
most  celebrated  was  the  one  devised  by  the  Count 
and  Countess  d'Houdetot  in  the  spring  of  1781, 
at  their  chateau  near  Paris.  It  was  a  fe"te  cham- 
pe'tre,  a  sort  of  garden  party,  and  at  the  dinner, 
which  formed  the  main  part  of  the  entertainment, 
each  guest  in  turn  recited  original  verses  in  Frank- 
lin's honor.  When  the  meal  was  over  he  was  taken 
into  the  grounds  and  presented  with  a  small 
Virginia  locust  tree,  which  his  host  and  hostess 
requested  him  to  plant  in  the  garden.  After  he 
had  obeyed  their  wishes,  the  countess  recited  some 
further  verses  commemorating  the  event;  and 
then,  to  the  accompaniment  of  a  band  of  music, 
the  assembled  guests  sang  a  song  in  praise  of  the 
famous  philosopher.  The  proceedings  of  the  fete, 
together  with  the  verses,  were  printed  and  dis- 


FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT  205 

tributed  in  Paris,  and  afterward  reprinted  in  the 
United  States. 

But  all  this  praise  did  not  blind  him  to  the  fact 
that  old  age  was  close  at  hand.  It  was  at  this  time 
that  he  sent  in  his  resignation  to  Congress.  Several 
severe  attacks  of  the  gout  had  made  him  fear  for 
his  health,  and  the  infirmities  of  age  were  creeping 
over  him.  He  was  now  seventy-five  years  old, 
fifty  years  of  which  he  had  spent  in  the  service  of 
the  public,  and  he  thought  it  was  high  time  for  him 
to  relinquish  his  post  in  favor  of  some  younger  man. 

Congress,  however,  thought  otherwise,  and  not 
only  refused  to  accept  his  resignation,  but,  when 
the  time  was  ripe,  it  made  him  one  of  the  commis- 
sioners to  take  up  the  question  of  peace  with  Eng- 
land. John  Adams  and  John  Jay  were  among  those 
appointed  to  act  with  him. 

For  several  years  secret  agents  had  been  coming 
over  from  England  to  see  Franklin  and  discuss 
the  prospects  for  peace,  but  nothing  had  resulted 
from  these  conferences.  After  the  surrender  of 
Cornwallis  at  Yorktown,  however,  the  English 
began  to  realize  that  all  hope  of  conquering  the 
United  States  was  gone.  The  surrender  occurred 
on  October  17,  1781,  and  from  that  time  on  the 
English  government  was  very  anxious  to  bring 
the  war  to  a  close. 


206  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

The  first  serious  attempt  to  negotiate  peace  came 
in  January,  1782;  and  the  English  tried  to  make 
separate  agreements  with  France  and  the  United 
States,  but  each  nation  refused  indignantly  to 
enter  into  any  understanding  with  their  common 
enemy  without  the  concurrence  of  the  other. 

In  March  of  this  year,  the  party  in  England  that 
had  been  in  favor  of  the  war  was  driven  out  of 
power,  and  the  men  who  had  been  on  the  side  of 
the  Americans,  and  were  stanch  friends  and  sup- 
porters of  Franklin,  were  put  into  office.  Among 
these  were  Edmund  Burke,  Charles  Fox,  and  Lord 
Shelburne ;  and  as  soon  as  the  change  of  ministry 
was  effected,  they  began  to  negotiate  for  peace 
in  good  earnest. 

Unfortunately,  at  this  time  there  were  two  sec- 
retaries for  foreign  affairs  in  England.  Charles 
Fox  was  one,  having  charge  of  what  was  called  the 
southern  department,  which  included  France. 
Lord  Shelburne,  the  other,  was  the  head  of  the 
northern  department,  which  included  the  United 
States.  The  result  of  this  absurd  arrangement 
was  that  neither  Lord  Shelburne  nor  Charles  Fox 
could  treat  with  both  France  and  America;  and 
each  had  to  send  over  his  own  special  commissioner 
to  Paris,  one  to  enter  into  negotiations  with  the 
Count  de  Vergennes,  the  other  with  Franklin, 


FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT  207 

Mr.  Grenville  was  Charles  Fox's  representative,  Mr. 
Oswald,  Lord  Shelburne's;  and  the  natural  sus- 
picion arose  that  England  was  again  trying  to  make 
separate  terms  of  peace  with  France  and  America. 

The  matter  dragged  on  through  the  spring  of 
1782,  without  any  result.  Then,  in  June,  John 
Jay,  one  of  Franklin's  fellow-commissioners,  ar- 
rived in  Paris,  and  Franklin,  who  had  been  carrying 
on  the  negotiations  done,  was  seized  with  a  severe 
attack  of  influenza  which  laid  him  up  for  several 
months.  One  of  the  principal  points  upon  which 
Franklin  had  insisted,  during  these  first  attempts 
to  conclude  peace,  was  the  cession  of  Canada  to  the 
United  States;  and  if  he  had  been  able  to  come 
to  terms  with  England  at  that  time,  it  is  very  prob- 
able that  the  latter  country  would  have  agreed 
to  his  demand.  As  it  was,  he  was  not  well  enough 
to  continue  his  work  until  the  summer  was  almost 
over,  and  by  that  time  there  were  other  condi- 
tions and  problems  to  face. 

The  horrors  of  Indian  warfare,  and  the  treatment 
to  which  the  Americans  had  been  subjected  during 
the  war,  had  concerned  him  greatly;  and  during 
this  year  he  brought  the  matter  to  the  minds  of 
the  French  and  English  in  a  very  clever  way. 
When  he  had  first  taken  up  his  residence  in  Passy 
he  had  installed  a  small  printing-press  in  his  house. 


208  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

On  this  he  had  printed  many  of  his  humorous 
writings  —  his  "bagatelles,"  as  he  called  them. 
Now  he  turned  the  press  to  a  more  serious  use. 
He  wrote  and  printed  what  was  supposed  to  be  a 
supplement  of  the  Boston  Independent  Chronicle,  an 
imaginary  newspaper  which  he  allowed  the  public 
to  think  was  published  in  the  United  States.  In 
this  supplement  he  stated  certain  facts  relating  to 
the  barbarous  manner  in  which  the  war  had  been 
carried  on.  The  principal  article  mentioned  a 
large  number  of  scalps  that  had  been  captured 
from  the  Indians  by  an  American  officer,  and  that 
were  to  have  been  sent  as  a  special  gift  to  George 
III.  Following  this  grewsome  account  there  came 
a  letter  purporting  to  have  been  written  by  John 
Paul  Jones  to  Sir  Joseph  Yorke,  the  English  am- 
bassador to  Holland.  Sir  Joseph  had  publicly 
charged  Jones  with  being  a  pirate,  and  the  letter 
was  Jones's  defense  to  the  charge. 

"A  pirate,"  it  read,  "is  defined  to  be  hostis  humani  ge- 
neris (an  enemy  to  all  mankind).  It  happens,  Sir,  that  I  am 
an  enemy  to  no  part  of  mankind,  except  your  nation,  the 
English ;  which  nation,  at  the  same  time,  conies  much  more 
within  the  definition,  being  actually  an  enemy  to,  and  at 
war  with,  one  whole  quarter  of  the  world.  ...  A  pirate 
makes  war  for  the  sake  of  rapine.  This  is  not  the  kind  of 
war  I  am  engaged  in  against  England.  Ours  is  a  war  in 
defense  of  liberty,  the  most  just  of  all  wars;  and  of  our 


FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT  209 

Properties,  which  your  nation  would  have  taken  from  us 
without  our  consent,  in  violation  of  our  rights,  and  by  an 
armed  force.  Yours,  therefore,  is  a  war  of  rapine;  of 
course  a  piratical  war;  and  those  who  approve  of  it,  and 
are  engaged  in  it,  more  justly  deserve  the  name  of  pirates 
which  you  bestow  on  me." 

There  were  other  shorter  articles  and  a  few 
advertisements,  to  give  the  "supplement"  an  ap- 
pearance of  genuineness.  Franklin  saw  that  copies 
of  it  were  distributed  throughout  France  and 
England,  where  it  created  an  immense  stir.  No 
one  appeared  to  have  doubted  that  it  was  a  real 
newspaper,  and  only  one  man  ever  guessed  the 
authorship  of  the  Jones  letter.  This  man  was  the 
celebrated  English  wit  and  critic,  Horace  Walpole, 
who,  in  writing  to  a  friend,  asked,  "Have  you  seen 
in  the  papers  an  excellent  letter  by  Paul  Jones  to 
Sir  Joseph  Yorke  ?  Elle  nous  dit  bien  des  verites  [it 
tells  us  many  truths].  I  doubt  poor  Sir  Joseph 
cannot  answer  them !  Dr.  Franklin  himself,  I 
should  think,  was  the  author.  It  is  certainly  from 
a  first-rate  pen,  and  not  a  common  man-of-war." 

By  the  middle  of  August  England  had  discovered 
the  suspicions  of  the  French  government  and  the 
American  commissioners,  and  had  sought  to  mend 
matters  by  recalling  Grenville  and  appointing  an- 
other agent,  Alleyne  Fitzherbert,  in  his  place. 


210  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

This  man  was  to  treat  with  France  in  conjunction 
with  Oswald,  who  was  empowered  to  treat  with 
the  United  States.  A  new  difficulty  arose,  how- 
ever. In  Oswald's  commission  the  United  States 
were  not  once  referred  to  by  that  name,  but  were 
called  the  "Colonies  or  Plantations."  John  Jay 
imagined  that  this  was  a  ruse  on  the  part  of  the 
English,  and  meant  that  they  would  not  recognize 
the  independence  of  the  United  States.  Both 
Franklin  and  the  Count  de  Vergennes  tried  to 
persuade  him  out  of  this  notion,  but  were  unsuccess- 
ful. Finally,  after  a  month  of  delay,  the  English 
government  sent  a  new  commission  to  Oswald  in 
which  the  United  States  were  mentioned  by  that 
name,  and  then  John  Jay  consented  to  discuss 
terms  with  the  English. 

During  the  month  of  October  conferences  were 
held  almost  every  day,  but  little,  if  anything, 
was  accomplished.  On  October  26  John  Adams 
joined  Franklin  and  Jay,  and  a  month  later  Henry 
Laurens,  another  commissioner,  arrived  in  Paris. 
Thomas  Jefferson,  the  last  member  of  the  commis- 
sion, did  not  land  in  France  until  the  matter  was 
finished. 

From  the  date  of  Adams's  arrival,  affairs  moved 
faster.  Parliament  was  to  meet  in  a  month,  and 
if  some  sort  of  terms  were  not  agreed  upon  by  that 


FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT  211 

time,  it  was  feared  that  the  party  that  favored 
peace  might  be  driven  from  power.  There  were 
three  points  in  dispute :  the  extent  of  the  bounda- 
ries of  the  United  States,  the  right  to  fish  off  the 
Newfoundland  Banks,  and  the  compensation  which 
the  United  States  should  pay  to  those  in  America 
who  had  been  on  the  English  side,  and  whose 
property  had  been  taken  or  destroyed  by  the 
Americans. 

After  a  great  deal  of  discussion,  the  English 
commissioners  finally  agreed  to  the  demands  of 
the  Americans  as  to  the  fishing  rights  and  the 
boundaries,  ceding  to  the  United  States  the  whole 
of  that  territory  which  is  now  the  state  of  Maine ; 
but  they  insisted  that  the  English  sympathizers 
in  America,  or  "  tories  "  as  they  were  called,  should 
be  paid  for  their  losses. 

The  matter  stood  in  this  shape  at  the  end  of 
November.  On  the  28th  the  commissioners  met 
and  debated,  but  came  to  no  decision.  On  the 
2Qth  they  met  again;  and  when  it  was  apparent 
that  no  progress  could  be  made,  Adams  suggested 
that  a  courier  be  sent  to  England  for  further  in- 
structions. 

"If  that  is  the  case,"  said  Franklin,  "he  ought 
to  carry  something  respecting  a  compensation  to 
the  sufferers  in  America." 


212  BENJAMIN   FRANKLIN 

He  produced  a  paper  from  his  pocket  and  began 
to  read  it.  It  was  in  the  form  of  an  agreement, 
and  bound  England  to  pay  the  Americans  for  all 
the  losses  they  had  sustained  at  the  hands  of  the 
British.  This  article,  Franklin  stated,  he  intended 
to  have  inserted  as  a  part  of  the  treaty. 

The  English  commissioners  were  speechless. 
In  dollars  and  cents  the  damage  done  by  the  Eng- 
lish in  the  United  States  far  exceeded  the  losses  of 
the  tones,  and  England  would  have  to  pay  a 
much  larger  sum  than  the  Americans.  Oswald 
and  Fitzherbert  realized  the  clever  trap  that  Frank- 
lin had  set  for  them,  and  asked  leave  to  withdraw 
for  consultation.  When  they  returned  they  an- 
nounced that  the  question  of  compensating  the 
tories  would  be  dropped,  and  that  they  were  willing 
to  agree  to  the  terms  as  proposed  by  the  United 
States.  The  treaty  was  then  read  over,  and  on 
the  next  day,  November  30,  1782,  the  document 
was  formally  signed. 

This  was  only  a  preliminary  treaty,  and  neither 
Franklin  nor  the  other  American  commissioners 
had  seen  fit  to  notify  the  Count  de  Vergennes  of 
its  contents  until  after  it  had  been  signed.  The 
Count  was  very  much  put  out  that  the  United 
States  should  have  entered  into  the  agreement 
without  the  consent  of  France;  and  for  several 


FRANKLIN  THE  DIPLOMAT  213 

weeks  there  was  a  decided  coolness  between  him 
and  the  commissioners.  Franklin,  however,  man- 
aged to  soothe  him;  and  on  January  18,  1783, 
the  Count  and  Mr.  Fitzherbert  agreed  upon  the 
preliminary  articles  of  peace  between  France  and 
England  in  the  friendliest  way  possible. 

From  this  time  until  the  following  September 
the  terms  of  the  final  treaty  were  talked  over  and 
debated,  but  neither  the  English  government  nor 
the  American  commissioners  could  come  to  any 
understanding,  and  at  length  the  preliminary  treaty 
was  adopted  as  the  final  one.  It  was  signed  in 
Paris,  on  September  3,  1783 ;  and  on  the  same 
day,  as  soon  as  the  Count  de  Vergennes  had  re- 
ceived word  of  the  fact,  the  treaty  between  France 
and  Great  Britain  was  signed  at  Versailles.  So, 
after  almost  two  years  of  discussion  and  arguments, 
the  negotiations  were  at  last  brought  to  a  successful 
close. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

THE  FAREWELL  TO  FRANCE 

IN  1782,  shortly  after  the  signing  of  the  prelim- 
inary treaty,  Franklin  again  sent  in  his  resignation. 
No  answer  was  received  from'  Congress;  and 
after  the  final  treaty  was  signed,  Franklin  once 
more  wrote  to  that  body  stating  that  he  wished  to 
be  relieved  of  his  post.  A  year  and  a  half  was  to 
pass  before  Congress  finally  permitted  him  to 
return. 

In  the  meanwhile  Franklin  was  engaged  in 
entering  into  treaties  with  other  nations  in  Europe, 
all  of  which  he  concluded  successfully  for  the  United 
States. 

The  war  was  now  at  an  end,  and  many  English- 
men came  over  to  travel  in  France.  Franklin  was 
then  probably  the  most  famous  man  on  the  whole 
continent;  and  it  became  the  common  and  cour- 
teous thing  to  make  a  pilgrimage  to  Passy  and  call 
upon  him.  He  had  a  continuous  stream  of  visitors 
from  morning  until  night.  John  Baynes,  a  young 
English  lawyer,  has  left  an  interesting  account  of 

214 


THE  FAREWELL  TO  FRANCE  215 

Franklin's  appearance  and  mode  of  life.  "Dr. 
Franklin's  house,"  he  says,  "is  delightfully  situated 
and  seems  very  spacious;  and  he  seemed  to  have 
a  great  number  of  domestics.  We  sent  up  the 
letter,  and  were  then  shown  up  into  his  bedchamber, 
where  he  sat  in  his  nightgown,  his  feet  wrapped  up 
in  flannels,  and  resting  on  a  pillow,  he  having  for 
three  or  four  days  been  much  afflicted  with  the 
gout.  ...  I  never  enjoyed  so  much  pleasure  in 
my  life,  as  in  the  present  conversation  with  this 
great  and  good  character.  He  looked  very  well, 
notwithstanding  his  illness,  and,  as  usual,  wore 
his  spectacles." 

The  invention  of  the  balloon,  in  1782,  by 
the  Frenchman,  Montgolfier,  interested  Franklin 
greatly,  and  he  not  only  subscribed  liberally  toward 
the  advancement  of  the  new  science,  but  watched 
the  experiments  with  keen  delight.  "The  progress 
made  in  the  management  of  balloons,"  he  wrote  to 
a  friend,  "has  been  rapid.  Yet  I  fear  it  will  hardly 
become  a  common  carriage  in  my  time,  though, 
being  easiest  of  all  witures  [vehicles],  it  would  be 
extremely  convenient  to  me,  now  that  my  malady 
forbids  the  use  of  old  ones  over  a  pavement." 

Indeed,  at  this  time  he  was  a  constant  sufferer 
from  gout  and  other  complaints.  For  weeks  at  a 
stretch  he  could  not  bear  the  slightest  motion,  and 


216  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

had  to  remain  continuously  at  home.  It  was  even 
thought  for  a  time  that  he  would  not  be  able  to 
stand  the  journey  to  America,  and  would  have  to 
finish  out  the  remainder  of  his  days  in  France. 

In  1784  occurred  the  famous  inquiry  into  mes- 
merism. Mesmerism,  as  it  was  understood  in  that 
day,  was  not  the  scientific  thing  that  we  now 
know,  but  was  a  sort  of  fraud  created  by  a  man 
named  Mesmer,  who,  in  1778,  had  established  him- 
self in  Paris,  and  claimed  to  be  able  to  cure  all 
diseases  by  magnetic  influence.  He  became  im- 
mensely rich  in  the  practice  of  his  pretended  cure, 
and  the  French  government  finally  decided  to 
investigate  it.  Mesmer  himself  managed  to  escape 
the  inquiry,  but  Deslon,  his  most  successful  pupil, 
agreed  to  submit  himself  to  the  investigation. 

The  government  appointed  a  commission  com- 
posed of  four  of  the  most  prominent  doctors  of  the 
Faculty  of  Paris,  and  five  members  of  the  Royal 
Academy  of  Sciences,  of  whom  Franklin  was  one. 
They  went  into  the  subject  very  thoroughly,  tak- 
ing the  whole  of  the  summer  of  1784  for  their 
examination.  Many  of  the  experiments  were 
performed  in  Franklin's  house  and  garden  at  Passy, 
where,  on  account  of  Franklin's  infirmities,  the 
commissioners  frequently  assembled  to  discuss  the 
matter  and  decide  upon  their  report.  When  it  was 


THE  FAREWELL  TO  FRANCE  217 

filed  in  August,  it  exposed  the  fraud  and  proved 
conclusively  that  the  pretended  cures  had  all  been 
brought  about  by  the  imagination  of  the  patients, 
and  not  by  any  of  the  magnetic  powers  which 
Mesmer  and  his  followers  claimed  to  possess.  As 
a  result  of  the  findings  of  the  commission,  Mesmer 
and  his  pupils  were  driven  out  of  Paris  and  quickly 
disappeared  from  France. 

Old  and  feeble  as  Franklin  had  become,  his 
intellect  was  as  keen  as  ever,  and  some  of  his  best 
essays  date  from  this  period.  Among  them  were 
his  famous  article  on  "The  Savages  of  North 
America"  and  his  "Information  to  those  who 
would  remove  to  America."  A  striking  example 
of  his  wit  is  contained  in  an  incident  which  hap- 
pened at  this  time,  and  though  some  doubt  has 
since  arisen  as  to  the  truth  of  the  anecdote,  it  is 
still  well  worth  relating. 

A  dinner  was  given  to  the  French  and  the  Eng- 
lish ambassadors,  at  which  Franklin  was  present. 
When  the  time  for  the  toasts  arrived  the  English 
ambassador  was  called  on  first. 

"To  England,"  he  said,  "the  sun,  whose  bright 
beams  enlighten  and  fructify  the  remotest  corners 
of  the  earth." 

The  French  ambassador  was  called  on  next. 
Not  wishing  to  be  outdone,  he  proposed  the  toast, 


218  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

"To  France  —  the  moon,  whose  mild,  steady,  and 
cheering  rays  are  the  delight  of  all  nations,  consol- 
ing them  in  darkness." 

When  Franklin's  turn  came  he  rose  and  said, 
"To  George  Washington  —  the  Joshua,  who  com- 
manded the  sun  and  moon  to  stand  still,  and  they 
obeyed  him!" 

It  was  during  his  stay  in  France  that  a  new  town 
in  Massachusetts  was  named  Franklin  in  his  honor. 
He  was  very  much  pleased  at  the  compliment,  and 
when  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  Emmons,  pastor  of  the 
town  church,  asked  him  to  donate  a  certain  sum 
for  the  steeple  which  the  townspeople  proposed  to 
have  built,  Franklin  advised  them  to  save  the 
expense  of  a  steeple,  and  presented  them  with  a 
fine  collection  of  books  instead. 

This  town  in  Massachusetts  was  the  first  one  to 
be  named  after  him.  To-day  almost  every  big 
city  in  the  United  States  has  a  Franklin  Park,  or  a 
Franklin  Square,  or  a  Franklin  Street ;  and  there 
is  hardly  a  state  in  the  Union  that  has  not  a  county, 
city,  town,  or  village  which  bears  his  name.  In 
the  index  of  any  large  atlas  it  will  be  seen  that,  in 
our  country  alone,  the  name  Franklin  appears 
nearly  one  hundred  times.  In  Passy  the  street  in 
which  his  house  stood  is  called  after  him  to  this  day. 

On  May  2,   1785,  Franklin    at    last    received 


THE  FAREWELL  TO  FRANCE  219 

word  that  his  resignation  had  been  accepted  by 
Congress,  and  he  immediately  began  to  make 
preparations  for  his  return  to  Philadelphia. 

Thomas  Jefferson,  who  had  been  for  some 
months  in  Paris,  was  appointed  to  fill  his  position. 

"You  replace  Dr.  Franklin,  I  hear,"  said  the 
Count  de  Vergennes  to  Jefferson. 

"I  succeed  him,"  graciously  replied  Jefferson. 
"No  one  can  replace  him." 

This  was  the  feeling  throughout  France;  and 
as  the  time  for  his  departure  drew  near,  ministers, 
nobles,  and  the  common  people  all  vied  to  do  him 
honor.  It  was  the  custom  for  the  king  to  present 
his  portrait  to  each  foreign  ambassador  upon  his 
leaving  for  home.  The  portrait  presented  to 
Franklin  was  encircled  by  four  hundred  and  eight 
diamonds  and  cost  about  ten  thousand  dollars. 

Shortly  before  he  left,  Franklin  was  seized  with 
a  very  severe  attack  of  the  gout,  complicated  with 
other  ailments,  and  could  not  stand  even  the  mo- 
tion of  a  carriage.  In  consequence  of  this  he  had 
to  give  up  the  customary  visit  to  Versailles  to  bid 
farewell  to  the  king  and  queen.  His  original  in- 
tention had  been  to  sail  down  the  river  Seine  to 
Havre,  where  he  could  take  passage  for  America ; 
but  it  was  the  middle  of  the  summer  before  he  was 
ready  to  leave,  and  by  that  time  the  river  was  so 


220  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

low  as  to  make  navigation  on  it  difficult  and  tedi- 
ous. In  this  dilemma  Queen  Marie  Antoinette 
came  to  his  aid.  She  sent  him  one  of  her  own 
litieres,  a  sort  of  couch  or  litter  carried  between 
two  large  mules ;  and  in  this  comfortable  convey- 
ance, accompanied  by  his  two  grandsons,  and  one 
or  two  friends,  he  left  Paris  on  July  12,  1785. 

His  last  official  act  in  France  was  the  signing  of  a 
treaty  between  Prussia  and  the  United  States.  It 
contained  a  provision  securing  the  property  of  pri- 
vate individuals  against  seizure  and  destruction 
in  time  of  war  —  a  subject  upon  which  Franklin 
felt  very  deeply  and  which  had  never  been  in  any 
treaty  before.  Denmark  and  Portugal  were  now 
the  only  two  countries  who  were  not  bound  by 
treaty  to  the  United  States ;  and  in  almost  every 
negotiation  Franklin  had  taken  part. 

His  little  party  traveled  leisurely  through  France, 
stopping  at  the  chateaux  of  nobles  or  the  houses  of 
friends  every  night,  and  being  entertained  every- 
where. The  journey  lasted  six  days.  After  a 
short  rest  in  Havre,  they  crossed  the  English  Chan- 
nel to  Southampton.  Here  they  spent  several 
days,  scores  of  Franklin's  old  friends  in  England 
flocking  from  all  quarters  to  bid  him  farewell. 
Among  his  visitors  was  his  son  William,  whom  he 
had  not  seen  for  ten  years.  The  meeting  was 


THE  FAREWELL  TO  FRANCE  221 

affectionate  on  both  sides,  and  before  Franklin 
sailed  he  had  the  pleasure  of  knowing  that  the 
breach  between  them  was  completely  healed. 

His  condition  had  improved  to  such  an  extent 
that  he  was  able  to  indulge  in  his  favorite  pastime 
of  bathing.  "I  went  at  noon,"  he  wrote  in  his 
diary,  "to  bathe  in  Martin's  salt  water  hot  bath, 
and,  floating  on  my  back,  fell  asleep,  and  slept 
near  an  hour  by  my  watch,  without  sinking  or 
turning !  A  thing  I  never  did  before,  and  should 
hardly  have  thought  possible." 

It  would  have  been  a  feat,  indeed,  for  any  one  to 
perform,  but  for  an  old  man  in  his  eightieth  year 
to  accomplish  it  and  live  to  tell  the  tale  was  noth- 
ing less  than  marvelous. 

It  had  been  his  intention  to  spend  his  time  dur- 
ing the  voyage  home  in  continuing  his  Autobiogra- 
phy, which  he  had  begun  in  England  hi  1771 ;  but 
his  health  and  spirits  had  continued  to  show  such 
improvement  that  he  turned  to  more  difficult 
work,  and  during  the  seven  weeks  of  the  voyage 
he  wrote  three  scientific  essays.  Together  they 
made  about  one  hundred  printed  pages.  One  of 
them  discussed  the  problem  of  smoky  chimneys 
and  how  they  could  be  cured;  another  gave  a 
minute  description  of  his  smoke-consuming  stove; 
and  the  third  and  longest  was  a  masterly  article 


222  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

on  navigation.  In  this  essay  he  suggests  an  appli- 
ance which  is  now  universally  used  in  marine 
construction.  "While  on  the  topic  of  sinking," 
he  says,  "one  cannot  help  recollecting  the  well- 
known  practice  of  the  Chinese,  to  divide  the  hold 
of  a  great  ship  into  a  number  of  separate  chambers 
by  partitions,  tight  calked,  so  that,  if  a  leak  should 
spring  in  one  of  them,  the  others  are  not  affected 
by  it;  and  though  that  chamber  should  fill  to  a 
level  with  the  sea,  it  would  not  be  sufficient  to  sink 
the  vessel."  To-day  such  "chambers"  are  known 
as  water-tight  compartments. 

On  September  13  the  ship  sailed  into  Delaware 
Bay,  and  the  next  morning,  with  a  favoring  wind 
and  on  a  flood  tide,  she  arrived  opposite  Philadel- 
phia. An  immense  throng  had  assembled  at  Mar- 
ket Street  Wharf  to  welcome  the  party,  and  as 
Franklin  stepped  ashore  he  was  greeted  with  the 
cheers  and  acclamations  of  the  multitude. 

On  that  same  spot,  sixty-two  years  before,  he 
had  first  set  foot  in  the  city ;  but  what  a  contrast 
there  was  between  the  hungry,  friendless  lad  who 
had  walked  up  Market  Street  on  that  chill  Sunday 
morning,  and  this  great  philosopher  and  diplomat, 
whose  name  and  fame  had  spread  over  two  con- 
tinents, and  whose  triumphant  return  was  the 
signal  for  public  rejoicing ! 


CHAPTER  XXII 

FRANKLIN  THE  GOVERNOR 

FRANKLIN  found  Pennsylvania  in  the  midst  of 
political  strife.  There  were  then  two  parties  in 
the  state.  One,  called  the  Republicans,  favored 
having  two  governing  bodies  in  the  legislature, 
something  like  the  Senate  and  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives in  our  present  Congress.  The  other, 
called  the  Constitutionalists,  were  in  favor  of 
having  only  one  governing  body,  as  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  state  then  provided  for.  Franklin  was 
a  Constitutionalist ;  and  as  the  news  of  his  arrival 
spread  through  the  countryside,  he  was  hailed  as 
the  saviour  of  his  party. 

He  was  very  reluctant  to  enter  public  life 
again,  but  he  finally  yielded  to  the  persuasions 
of  his  friends,  and,  a  week  or  so  after  his  return 
home,  he  consented  to  serve  upon  the  Executive 
Council  of  the  state.  He  was  unanimously  chosen 
chairman  of  the  Council. 

The  election  for  governor  of  the  state,  or  pres- 
ident, as  he  was  then  called,  took  place  in  October. 

223 


224  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

The  Executive  Council  and  the  Assembly  voted 
for  the  candidates.  There  were  seventy-seven 
votes  cast,  and  when  they  came  to  be  counted  it 
was  found  that  Franklin  had  received  seventy-six. 
The  single  vote  which  he  lacked  was  probably  the 
one  which  Franklin  himself  had  cast ! 

The  inauguration  occurred  on  the  same  day  as 
the  election,  a  procession  of  all  the  officials  and 
notables  of  the  city  escorting  the  new  governor  to 
the  State  House,  where  he  was  solemnly  sworn  in. 

For  years  it  had  been  one  of  Franklin's  pet 
theories  that  state  and  government  officials  should 
be  paid  no  salaries.  The  salary  which  he  received 
as  governor  he  used  toward  founding  a  college  for 
Germans  in  the  town  of  Lancaster,  and  for  other 
public  charities  and  institutions,  not  touching  a 
penny  of  it  himself . 

During  the  next  two  years  his  life  was  peaceful 
and  pleasant.  He  was  reflected  to  the  governor- 
ship in  1786,  and  again  in  1787  ;  and  he  governed 
the  state  with  a  wisdom  and  intelligence  which  it 
has  never  since  known.  The  people  prospered 
under  his  rule,  and  he  himself  appears  to  have 
been  benefited  physically  by  the  official  labors 
which  his  position  imposed  upon  him.  Except 
at  the  sessions  of  the  legislature,  his  work  was 
not  very  tiring,  and  the  constant  flow  of  friends 


FRANKLIN  THE   GOVERNOR 


225 


and  visitors  at  his  house  on  Market  Street  was 
no  doubt  a  source  of  great  pleasure  and  enter- 
tainment to  him. 

The  addition  of  a  wing  to  this  house  occupied 
much  of  his  leisure  time.  It  was 
three  stories  high.  The  first  floor 
was  designed  for  the  meetings  of 
the  Philosophical  Society;  the 
second  he  reserved  for  his  library ; 
and  the  third  was  made  up  of 
lodging-rooms.  In  the  library  he 
took  a  special  pride.  It  contained 
the  largest  and  best-chosen  pri- 
vate collection  of  books  in  the 
country ;  and  here,  in  reading  and 
study,  he  spent  all  his  spare  hours. 

He  gave  his  ingenuity  full  sway 
in  the  countless  little  improve- 
ments and  labor-saving  devices 
which  he  invented,  not  only  for 
this  room,  but  for  other  parts  of 
the  house.  Finding  it  troublesome 
to  reach  up  for  books,  he  had  his 
easy  chair  built  in  such  a  way 
that  by  turning  up  the  seat  it 
formed  a  stepladder,  a  contrivance 
in  common  use  to-day.  Later,  FRAMCUM'S  CLOCK 
Q 


226  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

he  introduced  a  simpler  contrivance  which  he 
called  his  "long  arm."  It  was  a  stick  with  an 
arrangement  in  the  shape  of  a  hand  at  one  end  by 
which  he  could  take  books  from  the  highest  shelf. 
Below  the  grate  of  the  fireplace  in  the  library  he 
had  had  built  a  small  iron  plate  or  trapdoor,  about 
six  inches  square,  with  a  hinge  and  a  small  ring 
to  raise  it  by.  When  this  door  was  lifted,  a  current 
of  air  from  the  cellar  rushed  up  through  the  grate 
and  rekindled  the  fire. 

In  his  bedroom  he  had  two  cords  hanging  be- 
side his  bed.  One  was  to  pull  a  bell.  The  other 
raised  an  iron  bolt,  about  an  inch  square  and  nine 
or  ten  inches  long,  which  dropped  through  staples 
at  the  top  of  the  door  leading  into  the  room ;  and 
until  the  bolt  was  raised  the  door  could  not  be 
opened.  He  also  improved  the  crude  mechanism 
which  was  then  used  for  copying  letters;  and  in 
1787,  Washington  in  his  diary  relates  that  he 
"visited  a  Machine  at  Dr.  Franklin's  (called  a 
Mangle)  for  pressing  in  place  of  ironing  clothes 
from  the  wash,  which  Machine,  from  the  facility 
with  which  it  despatches  business,  is  well  calculated 
for  Table  cloths  &  such  articles  as  have  not  pleats 
&  irregular  foldings,  and  might  be  very  useful  in 
large  families."  Another,  and  perhaps  the  most 
original  of  his  devices,  was  the  vessel  or  tub  in 


FRANKLIN  THE  GOVERNOR  227 

which  he  took  his  daily  bath.  It  was  composed 
of  copper,  and  made  in  the  form  of  a  slipper.  He 
sat  in  the  heel  with  his  legs  extended  into  the  toe 
or  vamp;  and  on  the  instep  there  was  a  stand 
big  enough  to  hold  a  book,  so  that  he  might  employ 
his  time  in  reading  or  writing  as  he  wished. 

To  guard  against  a  recurrence  of  his  old  ail- 
ments, he  had  a  sedan  chair  made,  and  during  the 
last  year  or  two  of  his  life  he  was  often  carried 
about  in  it  through  the  streets. 

In  May,  1787,  after  six  years  of  delay,  a  conven- 
tion was  finally  called  in  Philadelphia  to  frame  a 
constitution  by  which  the  United  States  might  be 
governed.  Franklin  was  not  originally  elected  a 
member,  but  when  some  doubt  arose  as  to  whether 
Washington  would  attend,  Franklin's  name  was 
added  to  the  Pennsylvania  delegation,  so  that  there 
would  be  present  at  least  one  man  whose  opinion 
and  advice  would  be  listened  to  by  everybody. 

As  it  happened,  however,  Washington  did  attend, 
and  was  chosen  president  of  the  convention. 
Upon  his  arrival  in  Philadelphia,  one  of  his  first 
acts  was  to  visit  Franklin;  and  during  his  whole 
stay  in  the  city  he  was  much  in  the  company  of 
the  aged  philosopher  —  Washington  aged  fifty- 
five  and  Franklin  aged  eighty-one. 

The  convention  assembled  on   May   25,   1787. 


228  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

A  severe  rainstorm  prevented  Franklin  from  attend- 
ing on  the  opening  day ;  but  at  the  next  meeting 
he  was  present,  and  he  missed  scarcely  a  day  of 
the  remainder  of  the  long  four  months'  session. 

The  convention  was  held  behind  closed  doors, 
and  very  little  is  known  of  the  debates  and  dis- 
cussions that  took  place.  It  is  known,  however, 
that  Franklin  himself  seldom,  if  ever,  spoke  from 
the  floor.  His  feebleness  made  it  impossible  for 
him  to  stand  very  long  upon  his  feet,  so  he  wrote 
out  his  speeches  beforehand,  and  had  some  member 
read  them  for  him. 

For  the  first  two  months  the  convention  wrangled 
over  the  proper  representation  of  the  different 
states  in  Congress.  If  members  of  Congress  were 
elected  according  to  the  size  of  a  state,  or  according 
to  its  population,  such  small  states  as  Rhode 
Island  and  Delaware  would  have  only  one  or  two 
representatives,  while  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania 
would  have  fifteen  or  twenty.  Neither  Rhode 
Island  nor  Delaware  would  come  into  any  union 
where  it  would  have  only  a  small  chance  of  being 
heard,  and  for  a  time  it  looked  as  though  the 
convention  would  break  up  without  accomplishing 
anything. 

At  last  a  committee  was  chosen  to  draw  up  some 
sort  of  agreement  which  would  suit  both  the  large 


FRANKLIN  THE  GOVERNOR  229 

and  the  small  states.  Franklin  was  a  member  of 
this  committee,  and  suggested  the  simple  plan  of 
having  each  state  represented  equally  in  the  Senate, 
while  the  number  of  members  which  it  might  send 
to  the  House  of  Representatives  should  be  deter- 
mined by  its  population.  After  heated  debates 
this  expedient  was  adopted ;  and  Franklin  had  the 
signal  honor  of  not  only  saving  the  convention 
from  disruption,  but  of  originating  a  system  of 
representation  which  was  fair  to  states  of  all 
sizes,  and  which  remains  to-day  one  of  the  most 
striking  features  of  the  Constitution. 

Among  the  other  things  which  he  strongly  ad- 
vocated was  that  the  President  of  the  United 
States  should  be  elected  for  a  term  of  seven  years, 
and  not  be  eligible  for  reelection.  The  convention 
finally  decided  upon  the  four-year  term,  and  made 
no  mention  of  reelection;  but  lately  Franklin's 
idea  has  found  much  favor,  and  it  would  indeed  be 
curious  if,  after  the  lapse  of  more  than  a  hundred 
and  twenty-five  years,  his  plan  were  finally  adopted. 

His  work  in  the  convention  was  a  fitting  close 
to  his  public  career;  and  the  services  which  he 
rendered  his  country  in  the  framing  of  the  Consti- 
tution would  alone  have  been  enough  to  have  won 
him  lasting  fame.  There  is  hardly  a  clause  in 
that  great  document  which  does  not  bear  the 


230  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

stamp  of  his  advice  and  approval,  while  his  never- 
failing  wit  and  tact  kept  the  members  in  good  humor 
and  made  the  Constitution  not  only  a  possibility 
but  a  glorious  reality. 

When  all  the  terms  had  been  agreed  upon, 
Franklin  urged  the  members  to  pass  the  Constitu- 
tion unanimously;  and  he  spoke  to  such  good 
effect  that  even  those  who  were  not  entirely 
satisfied  with  it  signed  it  to  a  man. 

A  typical  incident  marked  the  closing  scenes  of 
the  convention.  It  is  related  by  James  Madison, 
one  of  the  members,  and  Franklin's  stanch  sup- 
porter throughout  the  whole  proceedings.  "While 
the  last  members  were  signing,"  he  says,  "Dr. 
Franklin,  looking  toward  the  president's  chair, 
at  the  back  of  which  a  rising  sun  happened  to  be 
painted,  observed  to  a  few  members  near  him 
that  painters  had  found  it  difficult  to  distinguish 
in  their  art,  a  rising,  from  a  setting,  sun.  'I  have,' 
said  he,  'often  and  often  in  the  course  of  the 
session,  and  the  vicissitudes  of  my  hopes  and 
fears  as  to  its  issue,  looked  at  that  behind  the  pres- 
ident, without  being  able  to  tell  whether  it  was 
rising  or  setting;  but  now,  at  length,  I  have  the 
happiness  to  know  that  it  is  a  rising  and  not  a 
setting  sun.'" 

On   September   17   the   convention   adjourned. 


FRANKLIN  THE  GOVERNOR  231 

The  work  for  which  it  had  been  called  together 
had  been  accomplished,  and  now  it  only  remained 
for  the  thirteen  states  to  adopt  the  Constitution. 
Franklin  was  untiring  in  his  efforts  in  this  direc- 
tion, and  through  his  persuasion  and  influence  he 
won  over  several  of  the  lukewarm  states.  When 
ten  states  had  agreed  to  accept  the  provisions  of 
the  Constitution,  a  great  parade,  followed  by  a 
banquet  and  orations,  was  given  in  Philadelphia 
to  celebrate  the  event;  and  Franklin,  both  as  a 
leading  member  of  the  convention,  and  as  the 
governor  of  Pennsylvania,  was  one  of  the  most 
honored  and  distinguished  guests. 

This  was  probably  his  last  appearance  at  any 
great  public  ceremony.  After  the  convention  he 
served  out  his  third  term  as  governor  of  Pennsyl- 
vania ;  and  then,  at  the  age  of  eighty-two,  he  was 
at  last  allowed  to  retire  to  the  leisure  and  comfort 
of  private  life.  But  even  then  his  immense  vitality 
would  not  permit  him  to  remain  long  idle.  As 
soon  as  he  had  thrown  aside  the  cares  of  public 
office,  he  began  to  work  upon  his  half-finished 
Autobiography ;  and  although  he  never  completed 
it,  he  continued  to  work  on  it  until  a  short  time 
before  his  death. 

The  last  years  of  his  life  were  marked  with  the 
serenity  and  peace  of  a  man  whose  labors  are  over 


232  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 

and  whose  work  has  been  well  done.  Toward 
the  end  there  were  periods  when  he  suffered  a 
great  deal,  but  he  bore  the  pain  with  a  calmness 
and  bravery  truly  remarkable.  No  complaint 
ever  issued  from  his  lips ;  and  in  his  library,  where 
he  spent  the  greater  part  of  his  time,  or  in  his 
garden,  where  he  loved  to  sit  in  the  long  summer 
afternoons  with  his  grandchildren  gathered  about 
him,  he  greeted  his  hosts  of  visitors  with  the  quick 
bright  smile  and  the  firm  handclasp  which  had 
won  him  friends  the  world  over. 

"Let  us  sit  till  the  evening  of  life  is  spent,"  he  wrote  to 
a  friend.  "The  last  hours  are  always  the  most  joyful. 
When  we  can  stay  no  longer,  it  is  time  enough  then  to  bid 
each  other  good  night,  separate,  and  go  quietly  to  bed." 

This  was  his  simple  philosophy  of  life;  and  al- 
though his  last  few  years  were  very  precious  to 
him,  yet,  when  the  time  came,  he  was  ready  to  go. 
On  April  17,  1790,  with  his  family  and  his  closest 
friends  grouped  about  him,  he  died  as  he  had 
wished  to  die,  quietly,  calmly,  serenely,  and  at 
peace  with  the  world. 

A  great  scientist,  a  great  philosopher,  a  great 
diplomat  —  one  of  the  greatest  among  the  many 
great  men  of  his  day  —  Benjamin  Franklin  was, 
above  all  else,  a  great  American. 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America. 


/?          V 

,/^^r 

,/ 


" 


ill  ii  in  ii  ii  1 1  if'" 

A  A      000283508 


